The officials could not say for sure the exact Sinwar's location, but shared Israeli intelligence data that he could be in underground tunnels in the Khan Younis area, about five miles north of Rafah.
In January, The Wall Street Journal, citing officials, reported that Israel had so far managed to damage or disable only 20% to 40% of Hamas' underground tunnels in the Gaza Strip, and there were also difficulties in estimating the extent of the underground network. The same month, The New York Times, citing Israeli officials, wrote that the Israeli army anticipates that the network of tunnels built by Hamas under the Gaza Strip may be much larger than anticipated and that it will take years to completely destroy it.
In the night from Monday to Tuesday, the Israeli military started a military operation in the eastern parts of Rafah and took control of the Gaza side of the Rafah crossing with Egypt.
On October 7, 2023, Hamas launched a large-scale rocket attack against Israel and breached the border, attacking both civilian neighborhoods and military bases. Nearly 1,200 people in Israel were killed, and some 240 others abducted during the attack. Israel launched retaliatory strikes, ordered a complete blockade of Gaza, and started a ground incursion into the Palestinian enclave with the declared goal of eliminating Hamas fighters and rescuing the hostages. Over 34,900 people have been killed so far by Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip, according to local authorities. More than 100 hostages are still believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza.