Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was killed moments after making a “critical mistake”, according to Israel.

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) described the 61-year-old’s final minutes in a briefing on Thursday and stressed the strategic error that the Oct 7 mastermind made by leaving the Gaza tunnel network where he had been hiding.

The IDF forced him to “make this mistake” and “move like a fugitive” as they gradually closed off streets and blew up tunnels around Rafah in southern Gaza, Major Doron Spielman explained.

“In fact, just yesterday he did so [made a mistake]. He left the tunnel, went into an apartment building, and [Hamas] opened fire on Israeli troops. A tank returned fire, and he was killed in that attack,” said Maj Spielman.

The IDF claimed its troops restricted his movement to a “smaller and smaller area” as they advanced.

Maj Spielman added that the IDF had been operating around Rafah with the goal of eliminating “the most senior terrorists”.

Footage emerged late on Thursday of the moments before Sinwar was killed in a building on the outskirts of Rafah.

The Hamas leader threw a stick at an Israeli drone in an apparent final act of desperation.