Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and officials in Jerusalem have expressed certainty about another successful anti-jihadist offensives that has eliminated Hamas kingpin Yahya Sinwar, who also is known as the ‘Bin Laden of Gaza’. Sinwar was seen by the IDF as the top target as he was announced as the new leader of mega-terror outfit Hamas in early August following the elimination of former kingpin Islamil Haniyeh. Haniyeh was eliminated in Tehran through a time-bomb.

Yahya Sinwar, born in 1962 spent half his adult life in Israeli prison and was considered the most powerful and extremely cruel member of Hamas left alive following the elimination of Haniyeh.

According to a TOI report, Israel arrested him in the late 1980s and he admitted to killing 12 suspected collaborators, a role that earned him the nickname “The Butcher of Khan Younis”. He was sentenced to four life terms for offenses that included the killing of two Israeli soldiers.

Sinwar organized strikes in prison to improve working conditions. He also studied Hebrew and Israeli society and was seen as having a deep understanding of it.

Yahya Sinwar survived brain cancer in 2008 being treated by Israeli doctors. He was released from Israeli prison in 2011 by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu along with some 1,000 other Palestinian terrorists, including Ahlam Tamimi, as part of an exchange for Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. Shalit was captured by Hamas in 2006 during a cross-border raid.

Sinwar orchestrated the October 7 Massacre, which led to the deaths of over 1,200 people, including Israelis and other nationalities alike, and the taking of over 250 hostages, of which 101 remain in Gaza. Of the 101 hostages, the IDF confirmed that 48 were killed in captivity.

Who is Hamas terrorist Ahlam Tamimi?

Following her release from Israeli prison, Hamas terrorist Ahlam Ahmad Al-Tamimi aliases Ahlam Aref Ahmad Al-Tamimi, Ahlam Arafat Mazin Al Tamimi, Ahlam Arif Ahmad Al Tamimi, Ahlam Aref Ahmad Altamimi, Ahlam Arif Ahmad Altamimi, Ahlam Araf Ahmad Tamimi, Ahlam Aref Ahmad Tamimi, Ahlam Aref Ahmed Tamimi, Ihlam Araf Ahmad Tamimi, Achlam Tamimmi, Ahlam Araf Ahmed Tmimi, “Halati”, and “Khalti” has been living in Jordan and receiving numerous benefits from Jordanian Queen Rania. It may be mentioned here that Tamimi is in the ‘Most Wanted’ list of the Federal Investigation Agency (FBI).

According to FBI notice, Ahlam Ahmad Al-Tamimi has been charged with participating in an August 9, 2001, suicide bomb attack at a pizza restaurant in Jerusalem that killed 16 people, including three United States nationals.  Three other United States nationals were among approximately 122 others injured in the attack.  An affidavit in support of Al-Tamimi’s criminal complaint and a warrant for her arrest were sworn out under seal on July 15, 2013, in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia in Washington, DC, and were made public on March 14, 2017.

On January 16, 2024, the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations sent a letter to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrote:

We write today to reiterate how deeply concerned we are by the fact that Ahlam Aref Ahmad Al-Tamimi, an FBI Most Wanted Terrorist responsible for the heinous 2001 bombing of the Sbarro pizzeria in Jerusalem, continues to find refuge in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.

The horrific attack on the Sbarro pizzeria claimed the life of sixteen innocents, three of them American nationals. These victims included a pregnant woman, a woman who remained in a coma for more than twenty years before succumbing to her injuries, and 15-year-old Malki Roth. The pain and anguish experienced by Malki’s family, Frimet and Arnold Roth, are shared by countless others in the American Jewish community and beyond.

We are heartened by President Biden’s commitment to conducting diplomacy rooted in America’s democratic values and dedication to upholding universal rights. We believe that these principles should extend to seeking justice for victims of terrorism, regardless of where the perpetrators seek shelter.

Jordan’s refusal to extradite Ahlam Tamimi represents a breach of the 1995 bilateral treaty between the United States and Jordan. Despite her confessions and incriminating statements, she has enjoyed immunity from justice, further exacerbating tensions and fostering an environment of hatred and extremism in the region.

We believe that the United States should prioritize Tamimi’s extradition in our bilateral relations with Jordan. We suggest a comprehensive review of the leverage that could be applied by the United States to signal the importance of compliance with US law and principles.  We urge the State Department to engage in a robust diplomatic dialogue with Jordan’s leadership, stressing the importance of upholding international agreements and commitments to justice…

Jordanian authorities are not only extraditing Hamas terrorist Ahlam Tamimi despite repeated requests from Washington, at the personal initiative of Queen Rania, in 2021, Interpol surprisingly dropped name of Tamimi from its most-wanted list.

On March 8, 2021, Jordanian newspaper Al Ghad said that the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) has dropped the arrest warrant against the freed Palestinian prisoner Ahlam Al-Tamimi.

INTERPOL’s decision came after the US Department of Justice included Al-Tamimi on its terrorism list on charges of participating in the 2001 Sbarro pizzeria bombing in Jerusalem that killed 15 people, including eight children.

The Jordanian newspaper published a document it said was issued by INTERPOL, in which the organization announced that Al-Tamimi, born on 20 October, 1980, is no longer subject to an INTERPOL notice since the date of the document’s issuance.

Terrorist Ahlam Tamimi’s husband Nizar Barghouti in a Facebook post wrote: With this legal victory, her name was removed from the wanted list of Interpol, praise be to God.

It may be mentioned here that Tamimi’s husband Nizar Barghouti is also a notorious terrorist, who was detained in 1993 and sentenced to life in prison by Israel. On 18 October, 2011, Israel released him and handed over to Jordan as part of the Wafa Al-Ahrar prisoner exchange deal between Israel and mega-terror outfit Hamas, in which Israel released 1,047 detainees in exchange for the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.

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