tonight, i decided to step away for a while, from the sound of missiles & drones

rn, 50 kms out from tehran, above my head

With the confirmed killing of Hamas's top military commander Mohammad Sinwar in an Israeli strike, a chapter has closed on the elite leadership group in Gaza that orchestrated the events of 7 October, 2023.

Sinwar's demise follows the confirmed killings of other central figures who sat on what came to be known inside Hamas as the War Council.

Sinwar, his brother Yahya, Marwan Issa and a fifth unidentified figure formed the clandestine core that decided on and directed the unprecedented assault on Israel - one which shook the region and set off the conflict still unfolding in Gaza.

The War Council, sometimes also known as the Quintet Council, operated under conditions of extreme security and secrecy.