AAP FACTCHECK – A passport reportedly found near the body of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar has sparked false claims that the slain Hamas leader’s bodyguard worked for the UN as a teacher.
The UN and the man who owned the expired passport have confirmed that he is still alive and in Egypt with his family – not Gaza, where the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) killed Sinwar on October 16.
Two days after the Hamas leader’s death, Israeli news outlet Ynetnews.com reported that it appeared one of the two bodyguards killed alongside him worked as a teacher for the UNRWA.
After the IDF operation, images of items found near Sinwar’s body were aired on Israel’s Channel 12, including an expired passport bearing the name Hani Zourob that identified him as a UNRWA teacher, the UK’s The Telegraph reported.
A Facebook post featuring an image of the same passport claimed that it belonged to Sinwar’s slain bodyguard.
“Are any of you surprised to find out that among the items collected from the body of Sinwar and his bodyguard, it was discovered in the ID card of the bodyguard that he is a teacher at UNRWA?” the caption said.
Another Facebook post said: “Sinwar’s bodyguard was a UNRWA teacher, as per the passport found at the scene of the elimination.”
UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said the passport belonged to another man who travelled to Egypt with his family in April 2024, and he condemned the spread of “unchecked information” in an X post.
“Time to put an end to disinformation campaigns,” Mr Lazzarini wrote.
Mr Zourob himself also confirmed that he was in Egypt in a Facebook post on October 17, one day after Sinwar was killed.
His current passport and visa for Egypt confirmed that Mr Zourob was alive, France 24 reported (two minutes 28 seconds).
The Gaza war began after Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1200 people and taking 251 hostages back to Gaza, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel’s subsequent assault on Gaza has killed more than 43,000 Palestinians and reduced most of the enclave to rubble, Palestinian authorities say.
UNRWA sacked nine employees in 2024 after investigating allegations that 19 were involved in last year’s attack on Israel.
On October 28, Israel’s parliament voted to ban UNWRA from the country within 90 days.
AAP FactCheck has previously debunked claims that UNRWA added a black stripe to its logo to mourn the death of Sinwar.
The Verdict
False – The claim is inaccurate.
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