Vice President Kamala Harris called on Israel to consider an end to its war with Hamas following the confirmed death of the Oct. 7 terrorist attack mastermind Yahya Sinwar.
“Hamas is decimated, and its leadership is eliminated. This moment gives us an opportunity to finally end the war in Gaza,” Harris said in Milwaukee. “It must end such that Israel is secure, the hostages are released, the suffering in Gaza ends, and the Palestinian people can realize their right to dignity, security, freedom, and self-determination.”
In contrast to Israel’s notable intelligence successes of the past several weeks, Sinwar appeared to have met his demise almost entirely by chance. He was killed alongside two other Hamas terrorists Wednesday, though the Israelis did not realize it was Sinwar until a day later.
Harris and other political leaders weighed in on the news, with Harris reading a lengthy statement to the press.
“Sinwar was responsible for the killing of thousands of innocent people, including the victims of Oct. 7 and the hostages killed in Gaza. He had American blood on his hands,” she said. “Today, I can only hope that the families of the victims of Hamas feel a sense and measure of relief.”
Harris said those attacks triggered a devastating war that has led to “the unconscionable suffering of many innocent Palestinians and greater instability throughout the Middle East.”
President Joe Biden is en route to Germany, where he will discuss the war in Ukraine and the situation in the Middle East with leaders of that country.
“Yahya Sinwar is dead,” Biden said in a prepared statement. “This is a good day for Israel, for the United States, and for the world.”
Aboard Air Force One, national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters that Sinwar had been an obstacle to peace in Gaza.
“It was him who stood in the way of making progress toward a ceasefire and hostage deal,” Sullivan said. “His removal from the battlefield does present an opportunity to find a way forward that gets the hostages home, gets the war to end, and brings us to a day after.”
Back in Washington, several members of Congress weighed in as well.
Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) posted a graphic comparing Sinwar to Adolf Hitler.
Yahya Sinwar, the mastermind of the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust, is dead. pic.twitter.com/QzZm2zUiav
— Ritchie Torres (@RitchieTorres) October 17, 2024
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said Sinwar’s demise was a warning to other would-be terrorists.
“Let his death be a message to all who seek to terrorize Israel and the Jewish people,” he said. “Sinwar, in his beliefs and actions, has caused so much pain to the Israeli and Palestinian people, and I pray that his elimination from the scene will clear a path to urgently and immediately bring home all the hostages.”
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House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Turner (R-OH) said justice had been served.
“It is my hope that Sinwar’s elimination will result in further progress toward the release of all hostages still held in Gaza,” he said, “as well as to a ceasefire for Palestinians who have suffered under Hamas’ grip for far too long.”
