New York Times:"Instructions for October 7th Attack Found in Sinwar Hideout"

A six-page memo with instructions for the October 7 attack, written in Arabic by Muhammad Sinwar's brother and dated August 24, 2022, was found by Israeli intelligence in the bunker Sinwar used before his assassination. The document, shared with the New York Times, was on a computer not connected to any network and called on fighters to target Israeli soldiers and civilian communities, as well as to spread acts of violence to destabilize Israel. The instructions were similar to instructions later issued by Hamas on October 7 and intercepted by Israel.

The memo did not explicitly mention kidnapping and killing civilians, but instructed fighters to advance into residential areas and"set fires with gasoline." A few hours before October 7, a similar message was sent to fighters:"Burn everything. I want the entire kibutz on fire," a Gaza City battalion commander said, according to Israeli intercepts collected by Unit 8200.

The memo outlined a plan for a surprise attack on Israel, using bulldozers to breach the fence separating Gaza from Israel and sending in multiple waves of fighters. The document is supplemented by Israeli intercepts from October 7."Kill everyone you encounter," said Jabaliya battalion commander Abu Muath, urging them to"take hostages, many hostages." Shortly before the attack, Abu Muath had asked the fighters to film the attack:"It is essential to bring in drones and film for the entire Arab world."