The Foreign Ministry said Thursday that the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar by Israeli forces provided an “opportunity” for a potential ceasefire and an end to the years-long war.

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said until Sinwar’s death, “There has been no way to end this war because Sinwar has refused to talk about releasing the hostages.”

Yahya Sinwar chairs a meeting with leaders of Palestinian factions at his office in Gaza City on April 13, 2022. (AP)

“We now see an opportunity because he has been removed from the battlefield and from the leadership of Hamas. We wanted to take that opportunity,” Miller said.

Sinwar was the chief architect of the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre in which Hamas militants stormed into Israel, killing nearly 1,200 people and kidnapping 250 others in an attack that stunned the country. As of October 2024, Hamas militants continue to hold around 100 hostages.

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IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi speaks with troops at the site where Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was killed. (Israeli Armed Forces)

Israeli forces hailed Sinwar’s death as a major victory, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed his country will keep fighting until all hostages are free. He said Israeli forces will control Gaza long enough to ensure Hamas does not rearm itself.

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A view of a poster in the Iranian capital Tehran featuring Hamas political leader Yahya Sinwar, August 13, 2024 (Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Images)

It is not clear who will succeed Sinwar. While his death is a crippling blow to Hamas, the group has proven resilient to the losses of its past leaders.

“One thing we know for sure is that the world is a better place now that Sinwar is gone, and it gives us an opportunity we didn’t have while he was still calling the shots for Hamas,” Miller said. “We will have to wait and see what that will mean in the coming days.”

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In 12 months of fighting, Israeli forces have killed more than 42,000 Palestinians and destroyed much of the Gaza Strip. The figures come from the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza, which makes no distinction between civilians and fighters but says half of the dead were women and children.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.