After Yahya Sinwar sanctions, France looks to deepen EU's anti-Hamas push
France announced Tuesday it was freezing the assets of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar for six months, a move it says is a prerequisite for enforcement of European Union sanctions on Hamas leaders.
PARIS — France announced Tuesday it was freezing the assets of Gaza-based Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar for a period of six months. Sinwar is believed to be one of the key architects of Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people.
The French decree was signed by Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire on Nov. 30 and published in the Official Journal of the French Republic on Tuesday. The decision says that all “funds and economic resources owned, held or controlled” by Sinwar are now frozen.
The French made a similar move on Nov. 13, freezing the assets of Hamas military commander Mohammed Deif and his deputy Marwan Issa, though it's unclear what assets, if any, they hold in France.
Born in Khan Yunis in southern Gaza, Sinwar has been Hamas' chief in Gaza since 2017, while Deif is the commander of the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas' military wing in Gaza, and has survived several assassination attempts by Israel. Israeli officials consider both men to be central figures in the Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
