Hamas Chief's Widow Fled Gaza With Fake Passport, Remarried In Turkey: Report

Former Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar's widow escaped Gaza and has since remarried in Turkey, according to a report by Israeli news outlet Ynet. Samar Muhammad Abu Zamar, who married Sinwar in 2011 and holds a master's degree in theology from the Islamic University of Gaza, was reportedly smuggled out of the Strip along with her children using a forged passport.

"She's not here anymore; she's in Turkey with the children," a Gazan source told Ynet. The escape, according to the source, required "logistical support, cooperation at a high level, and a lot of cash that the average Gaza resident doesn't have." She allegedly used the passport of another Gazan woman and left Gaza through the Rafah border crossing into Egypt.

She remarried after Yahya Sinwar's death in October last year. The report claims that the remarriage in Turkey was arranged by Fathi Hammad, a senior official in Hamas' political bureau. Hammad has previously been linked to efforts to move Hamas operatives and their families out of the conflict zone.

According to Ynet, Hamas had established a system to extract senior members' families during the early months of Israel's war on Gaza, relying on fake documents, fictitious medical records, etc.

Najwa, the widow of Yahya Sinwar's brother Mohammed, who briefly took over leadership of the group after Sinwar's death, is also believed to have left Gaza through the same network. She has not been seen since, the report added. An Israeli security source confirmed that both women exited Gaza via Rafah before their husbands were killed.

Israeli troops killed Yahya Sinwar on October 16, 2024, during a routine patrol in Rafah's Tal al-Sultan neighbourhood. A drone located him inside a damaged building, injured. In publicly released footage, Sinwar appeared dust-covered and seated in an armchair, throwing a stick at the drone before Israeli fire struck the building. He died from a gunshot to the head and other injuries caused by debris.

Israel's war on Gaza has entered its 21st month, and over 59,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.

UN agencies and health groups warn Gaza faces famine-like conditions. Since March 2, Israel's blockade has severely limited entry of food, medicine, water, and fuel, accelerating hunger and malnutrition across the Strip.

At least 111 people, including infants, have died from hunger in recent weeks; nearly 100,000 women and children suffer severe acute malnutrition. Over 1,060 people have died and over 7,200 injured while attempting to access food in the past two months alone, largely near aid distribution centres.

A UN-backed IPC report warns that nearly all of Gaza's 2.1 million residents face acute food insecurity, with around 470,000 enduring catastrophic hunger of the highest level (Phase 5), effectively meaning starvation. Among the worst affected are 71,000 children under the age of five and 17,000 pregnant or breastfeeding women needing urgent care. The WHO says three-quarters of the population suffers extreme food deprivation, while lifesaving aid remains blocked minutes from those starving.