From 'fugitive' to 'hero', how IOF final images of Sinwar backfired
4 Min Read
The footage of Yahya Sinwar's last moments shatters "Israel's" numerous depictions of him sheltering underground surrounded by Israeli captives.
-
Yahya Sinwar talks during a rally in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, in 2011. (AP)
"Israel" is losing the propaganda war against the Palestinian Resistance, experts in the region maintained
The Washington Post has reported that after publishing photos of Yahya Sinwar after his martyrdom, it took mere hours for his images to get plastered on walls in Jenin and other areas in the West Bank.
While "Israel" tries to frame his demise as that of a "hunted fugitive", his supporters are using the same images to hail him as a heroic warrior who fought defiantly until his last breath, as noted by Beverley Milton-Edwards, a senior fellow at the Middle East Council on Global Affairs, who considered it a win for Hamas “in the battle of narratives.”
An IOF official defended the decision to release the images of Sinwar, alleging that troops had come across him by chance during a firefight near Rafah, noting that although he was wounded, “there is no evidence” that he participated in the shooting.
The Israeli footage showed Sinwar on a bloodied recliner, wearing a Kouffiyyeh, with fearlessness dwelling in his eyes.
This footage shatters "Israel's" numerous depictions of him sheltering underground, surrounded by Israeli captives, Milton-Edwards remarked.
"He wasn't in a tunnel, he didn't have cowering and emaciated Israeli hostages tied to him, and there were no Palestinian human shields," explained the co-author of "Hamas", a history of the group.
“Those images of Sinwar have already entered the pantheon of Hamas and other militant groups,” she said, adding that they will likely lead to “more support, more recruits, and more impetus for the resistance.”
According to an anonymous source close to Israeli security leadership, "Israel" had the Israeli public in mind when they released the irrefutable evidence of Sinwar's martyrdom.
Although US President Joe Biden compared Sinwar's martyrdom to “the scenes witnessed throughout the United States after President Obama ordered the raid to kill Osama bin Laden in 2011," the US did not in fact publicly release the images of his body, after it was allegedly buried at sea.
Michael Milshtein, a former head of Palestinian civilian affairs for the Israeli military, suggested that "Israel" might have benefited from a similar approach with Sinwar's footage, adding that "maybe an announcement is enough, or a single, more generic photo."
'Decapitation' strategy may not work on Hamas: Foreign Affairs
According to Audrey Kurth Cronin, "Israel's" primary goal has been to eliminate Hamas. It claims to have killed over 17,000 fighters from the Resistance while it aims to target Hamas leadership to try to inflict a decisive blow against the resistance.
Cronin wrote in Foreign Affairs that although this "decapitation" strategy—removing the leadership of a Resistance group—can be effective, it tends to work best against smaller, hierarchical groups with a dominant leader and no clear succession plan, typically active for less than ten years.
In contrast, older, more interconnected groups, like the Palestinian Resistance, have the ability to reorganize and survive, making Hamas a bad choice for such a strategy.
Cronin noted that Hamas is a well-connected organization with a political motive that appeals to a global audience with over 40 years of existence, operating beyond Gaza.
Despite "Israel's" failed attempts to dismantle it through targeted assassinations, its strong succession strategies often lead to new leaders who are even more committed, rendering Israeli efforts futile.
Sinwar's martyrdom has done nothing but solidify his status, particularly since he died on the battleground.
