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Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar has been killed by Israeli troops in Gaza, the military has confirmed.
The Israeli army said Mr Sinwar was killed on Wednesday in an operation in the southern Gaza Strip "after a year-long pursuit."
Israeli soldiers and intelligence officers were operating in the south "following intelligence that indicated the suspected locations of senior members of Hamas."
Mr Sinwar, Israel's most wanted target, was killed alongside two others by soldiers from the 828th brigade, the army said in a statement.
"After completing the process of identifying the body, it can be confirmed that Yahya Sinwar was eliminated," it added.
It did not specify where he was killed in southern Gaza.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Foreign Minister Israel Katz both issued statements praising the army over the killing, which they said paves the way for a hostage deal in Gaza.
Mr Sinwar took over the leadership of Hamas after his predecessor, Ismail Haniyeh, was killed in a suspected Israeli attack on an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps guesthouse in Tehran on July 31.
He had previously led Hamas's operations in Gaza, and is suspected of having masterminded the October 7 attacks last year, when militants killed about 1,200 people in southern Israel and abducted about 250.
Israel responded to the attacks by launching an air and ground assault in Gaza, killing more than 42,400 people, according to the enclave's Health Ministry.
Mr Sinwar had not been seen in public since before the war began and was believed to be hiding in Hamas's vast tunnel network beneath Gaza.
Photos circulated online purportedly show Mr Sinwar’s body amid the rubble of a destroyed building, while Israeli security sources told army radio it was “highly probable” that he was killed.
Israeli troops were not targeting him and did not know he might be in the building, local media reported, saying soldiers saw several militants enter a building on Wednesday before ordering an air strike. They then reportedly realised one of the dead resembled the Hamas leader while inspecting the scene.
A DNA sample has been sent to Israel for urgent testing, Channel 12 quoted security sources as saying, but the body, which was reportedly wearing a grenade-filled vest, has not been removed due to "booby traps" in the area.
A test result is expected within hours, it added, as Israeli authorities hold Mr Sinwar's DNA and fingerprints from his 23 years in the country's prisons.
Israeli diplomats have told regional partners that Mr Sinwar “is no longer alive”, army radio reported, while the security cabinet has also been briefed he is likely dead.
Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant also appeared to respond to rumours of Mr Sinwar's death. In a post on social media, Mr Gallant posted photographs of assassinated Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah and Hamas military commander Mohammed Deif with red crosses over their faces, with a third cross covering a black rectangle in the centre.
“Our enemies cannot hide. We will pursue and eliminate them,” Mr Gallant wrote.
The relatives of hostages still held in Gaza commended Israeli security forces for the rumoured killing and urged Israeli leaders to use it as leverage for a ceasefire deal which would see their loved ones released.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum described Mr Sinwar as "one of the major obstacles to a deal" and is "responsible for the murder of thousands and the abduction of hundreds”.
The forum expressed "grave concern" for the 101 hostages still held in the enclave, 33 of whom have been confirmed killed.
"This military success be leveraged into an immediate deal for their return," it said.
Israeli media has long claimed Mr Sinwar may be hiding in the tunnels with hostages, while the army confirmed that none were present at the scene of the strike.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has also spoken to hostage families to confirm none of them were harmed, local media reported.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid also called for Mr Netanyahu to use the Hamas leader's death to secure the release of the hostages.
"Israel should take advantage of the opportunity for a decisive move regarding the hostages," Mr Lapid said on X.
"Strive for a comprehensive deal and also offer monetary rewards and safe passage to anyone who brings hostages to our forces."