JERUSALEM: Hamas on Sunday confirmed the death of Mohammed Sinwar, its presumed leader in Gaza, more than three months after Israel said it had killed him in an air strike.

Pictures released by the Palestinian Islamist group on Saturday showed him alongside other political and military leaders described as"martyrs of the military council."

Mohammed Sinwar was the younger brother of Yahya Sinwar, accused by Israel of masterminding the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that sparked the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip.

He reportedly led the Al-Qassam Brigades' military council after the death of commander Mohammed Deif.

Israel said it had identified Mohammed Sinwar's body in June in a tunnel beneath the European Hospital in Khan Yunis, central Gaza. The military said it had"eliminated" him on May 13.

Hamas's October 2023 attack on southern Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.

Of the 251 hostages seized during the attack, 47 are still being held in Gaza, around 20 of whom are believed to be alive.

Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed at least 63,371 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza that the United Nations considers reliable. — AFP