Israeli drone video purportedly shows Hamas leader before death

The Israeli army has released a video purportedly capturing the final moments of Yehya al-Sinwar, the Palestinian leader of Hamas, killed by Israel in Gaza.

The footage, recorded by a drone, shows a man sitting in a bombed-out building, cloaked in dust and debris. As the drone hovers closer, he throws a stick at the remote-controlled aircraft.

The IDF said it identified the man in the video as al-Sinwar.

Shortly after the drone footage was taken, the military said that al-Sinwar was killed in Rafah, located in the southern Gaza Strip while fighting Israeli soldiers.

At that moment, they were unaware that they had killed the Hamas leader, which followed a months-long manhunt, various Israeli media reported.

Israeli media published images of the corpse amid the ruins, showing severe head injuries. Al-Sinwar's identity was subsequently confirmed through dental records and fingerprints.

Military spokesman Daniel Hagari officially announced the death of the Hamas leader on Thursday evening.