Yahya Sinwa, head of the political bureau of the Palestinian independence armed group Hamas, died of a gunshot wound to the head. This information was found in the Israeli autopsy report. The New York Times reported this on Friday.

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Dr. who provided the autopsy report. Chen Kugel told the newspaper that Sinwar was first stabbed in the hand and possibly by a missile or tank shell.

The Hamas leader then tried to stop the bleeding by tying an electric wire around his arm as first aid. But Kugel, director of Israel's National Forensic Institute, said it wasn't effective enough and his arm was broken.

He said Sinwar was killed by gunfire. But the New York Times reports that it is unclear who fired the shots, when they did it and what kind of weapon was used.

Meanwhile, according to the Israeli army, Sinwar died after being shot in the head during a routine patrol last Wednesday.

A patrol of soldiers from the 828th Brigade encountered three Palestinian Hamas fighters while passing through the town of Rafah, the army said.

Sinwar got separated from the other two as soldiers chased them, the military said.

Yahya Sinwar, the mastermind behind Hamas' surprise attack on Israel on October 7 last year, has never been seen in public again.

Sinwar's death is a major blow to the Palestinian freedom fighters of Hamas.