ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE (AP) 鈥� President Joe Biden said Thursday that the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar by Israeli troops is a 鈥済ood day for Israel, for the United States, and for the world,鈥� and called it an 鈥渙pportunity" to free Israeli hostages held by Hamas and end the yearlong war in Gaza.
Biden, in a statement, compared it to the feeling in the U.S. after the killing of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden, who was responsible for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, saying the killing of the mastermind of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel 鈥減roves once again that no terrorists anywhere in the world can escape justice, no matter how long it takes.鈥�
Biden said he would speak with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders to congratulate them 鈥渁nd to discuss the pathway for bringing the hostages home to their families, and for ending this war once and for all.鈥�
Biden said with Sinwar鈥檚 death 鈥渢here is now the opportunity for a 鈥榙ay after鈥� in Gaza without Hamas in power, and for a political settlement that provides a better future for Israelis and Palestinians alike.鈥�
He praised U.S. special operations forces and intelligence operatives who helped advise Israeli allies on tracking and locating Sinwar and other Hamas leaders over the last year 鈥� though the U.S. said the operation that killed Sinwar was an Israeli one.
National security adviser Jake Sullivan called Sinwar a 鈥渕assive obstacle鈥� to peace. He added, 鈥渉is removal from the battlefield does present an opportunity to find a way forward that gets the hostages home.鈥�
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Miller reported from Washington.
Josh Boak And Zeke Miller, The Associated Press