Over the years, slain Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar has been called many things. One of Israel's greatest enemies, he was known as the "Butcher of Khan Yunis". Others called him a "psychopath with borderline personality disorder". One thing is certain - Sinwar has always supported violence against Israel and Israelis.
Sinwar was born in a refugee camp in Khan Yunis, studied Arabic in Gaza City, where he is said to have met one of Hamas's founders, Ahmed Yassin. He first went to Israeli prison in the 1980s. Sinwar is said to have been with Yassin when he founded Hamas in 1987. Just a year later, an Israeli court gave him four life sentences for the murder of four Palestinian "collaborators" and two Israeli soldiers.
He killed people with both hands
Sinwar spent nearly 22 years in Israeli prisons, some of them in solitary confinement. During that time, he most likely became even more radicalized, ARD writes. Israeli journalist Ehud Yaari, who has interviewed Sinwar several times, describes him as a "unscrupulous, intelligent liar". In his words, he is "a psychopath with a borderline personality disorder who killed people with both hands - mainly Palestinians". Yaari says that Sinwar personally told him about this, describing some of the murders he himself ordered. Others also tell about the regime of terror he built behind bars. There he also became a kind of leader of the Palestinian prisoners.
He speaks Hebrew to understand the enemy
While in prison, Sinwar took time to learn Hebrew - so that he could better understand the enemy. Perhaps his idea was to be more aware of Israeli strategic thinking and its weaknesses. Another Israeli journalist who spoke with Sinwar said that the Hamas leader insisted on speaking Hebrew when he visited him in prison. "He knew part of the Torah by heart - in Hebrew. Not because he was a great theologian. Sinwar wanted to understand in our language when Israel would be destroyed", the journalist told ARD.
While in prison, Israeli doctors successfully treated the oncological disease from which Sinwar suffered. In 2011 he became part of a prisoner exchange along with over 1,000 other Palestinians - in exchange for just one Israeli soldier. Sinwari returned to the Gaza Strip and quickly rose through the ranks of Hamas. In 2017, he also became the leader of the group, which the US, the EU and others designate as a terrorist organization. Under his leadership, Hamas became even more radical, and the group's contacts with Iran increased, writes ARD correspondent Martin Durm.
The puppeteer of the October 7 attacks
It is claimed that Sinwar was behind the terrorist attack on October 7, but only a few people knew exactly what the plans were. ARD correspondent Bettina Meyer also recalls several public appearances by Sinwari in the Gaza Strip, in which he called for violence against Israel. "Anyone who has a weapon should prepare it. "And those who do not have weapons, let them take their knives and axes," he called then. After the terrorist attack and the taking of hundreds of hostages, Sinwar met with some of them in the tunnels under Gaza and spoke in Hebrew. "Nothing will happen to you. You are safe here," the Hamas leader told the hostages, one of the freed ones shared. A cynical comment against the backdrop of the large-scale clashes that have been taking place in the enclave since October 7, 2023, ARD notes.
At the top in a few weeks
It seems that for Sinwar, the price of the attack on Israel had to be paid, and it is huge - all of Gaza has been practically destroyed, tens of thousands of Palestinians have died, and the humanitarian catastrophe is of unprecedented proportions. When Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran this August, Sinwar quickly rose to the top of the group and became its political leader. This was also seen as a signal to Israel, which by then had already named Sinwar as the culprit for the October 7 attacks.
Will the war end now?
The Gaza Strip now has a chance to look to the "day after day" without Hamas in power, US President Joe Biden said on the occasion of Sinwar's elimination. There is also a chance for a political solution that offers a better future for both Israelis and Palestinians. Sinwar was an obstacle to achieving one that no longer exists, ARD writes.
Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu by phone to congratulate him on the military operation against Sinwar, the White House announced. The two also discussed "how this moment can be used to return the hostages home and end the war so that Israel's security is guaranteed and Hamas can never again control Gaza." The American president stressed that the terrorist organization is no longer capable of carrying out an attack like the one on October 7, 2023.
At the same time, Iran said that "the spirit of resistance will be strengthened" and Sinwar will serve as "an example for the youth and children who will continue his path to the liberation of Palestine." Hezbollah, in turn, announced a new escalation of military actions.
Mina Kirkova editor