PNN – A year after his martyrdom, Yahya Sinwar has become not the end, but the beginning of a new path. By architecting Operation Storm Al-Aqsa, he brought about the irreversible defeat of the Zionist regime.
On the first anniversary of the martyrdom of Yahya Sinwar, the late leader of the Hamas political bureau and architect of the historic “Al-Aqsa Storm” operation, it is an undeniable necessity to revisit his pivotal role in redefining the geopolitical equations of the region. Sinwar, who was martyred a year ago during a direct battle with the Zionist occupying forces in the city of Rafah, is not only a symbol of individual perseverance, but also a strategic embodiment of a profound transformation on the resistance front.
Sinwar has been introduced as the engineer of the structural collapse of the Zionist regime; a collapse that has transcended military boundaries and has also spread to the diplomatic, economic, social, and media spheres. This article examines Sinwar’s intellectual and practical legacy for the axis of resistance, from the fulfillment of his strategic promises, such as the release of prisoners, to the revival of the Palestinian cause in the global conscience.
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“Cleaning up Zionist spies”; the most important achievement of martyr Yahya Sinwar
Strategic Roots: From Captivity to Transformational Leadership
Born on October 29, 1962 in the Khan Yunis refugee camp in the Gaza Strip, Yahya Ibrahim Hassan Sinwar grew up under siege and displacement from a young age. His family, who had been driven from the city of Majdal (present-day Ashkelon) following the 1948 Nakba, represented a generation of oppressed and displaced Palestinians. By studying at the Islamic University of Gaza and receiving a degree in Arabic studies, Sinwar understood the depth of Palestine’s identity and political crisis earlier than his peers.
His numerous arrests since the 1980s, especially his life sentence in 1989, were not the end of the road, but the beginning of a new chapter in his strategic maturity. In the heart of the Israeli prisons, which he himself called “the black holes of death,” Sinwar, by learning Hebrew and studying it in depth, became the spiritual and practical leader of the Palestinian prisoners. While rebuilding Hamas’ security networks in prison, he played a decisive role in prisoner exchange negotiations, especially in the Gilad Shalit case (2011).
His release that same year, during the exchange of 1,027 Palestinian prisoners for a Zionist soldier, was a turning point that elevated Sinwar from a political prisoner to a full-fledged strategist for the resistance front. With close ties to Hamas’ military wing (the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades), Sinwar focused on strengthening the intelligence and operational infrastructure. His experiences in prison made him a confident, secretive, and impenetrable individual, a description that even Israeli security sources acknowledge. Sinwar’s early legacy can be seen in the structural restructuring of Hamas: from the national unity of the prisoners (the 2006 agreement with Marwan Barghouti and Ahmed Saadat) to the effective integration of the political and military branches of the movement.
Storm of Al-Aqsa: The Architecture of Military and Intelligence Failure
Operation “Al-Aqsa Storm” on October 7, 2023, Sinwar’s masterpiece, was not a spur-of-the-moment response but the result of years of careful planning. Sinwar had previously warned: “Hamas will turn the whole world against Israel.” The operation, using primitive means of grenades, simple drones, and ground infiltration, made a mockery of the Iron Dome, which was considered a symbol of Israel’s superior technology.
Former Israeli army chief of staff Aviv Kochavi admitted that Hamas had taken the Israeli army by surprise by “deceiving the calm of the southern front.” Ben Kaspit, a prominent Zionist journalist, called the operation “the most severe, painful, and humiliating defeat in Israeli history.”
Diplomatic and economic dimensions; the collapse of the global narrative
With a deep understanding of the importance of the war of narratives, Martyr Sinwar turned the Al-Aqsa Storm into a platform to expose the true face of the Zionist regime. His prediction about the illegitimacy of Israel’s war came true: From accusations of genocide at the International Criminal Court to calls for the regime’s leaders to be tried in international forums. Haaretz has acknowledged: Before the war, the Palestinian cause had fallen off the global agenda; now the Palestinians are at the forefront.
Sinwar’s diplomatic achievements are tangible: In May 2024, the UN General Assembly recommended full membership for Palestine by a vote of 143. Recognition of Palestine by countries increased from 138 to 159, including Norway, Ireland, Spain, Slovenia, the United Kingdom, France, Canada, Australia, and Portugal.
This wave is the result of popular movements around the world: 45,000 demonstrations in 800 European cities, 90,000 protesters in Sydney, and widespread protests in Asia and Latin America. In the United States, a Pew survey in March 2025 showed that 60 percent of people have a negative view of Israel, especially the younger generation who are growing up hating Zionism.
In the cultural sphere, 1,300 filmmakers around the world, including Hollywood, signed a statement boycotting Israeli institutions, in response to the regime’s attempt to hire influencers with a budget of $7,000 to change the narrative.
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The untold stories of Sinwar’s life: How Hamas’ number one man became the Zionists’ nightmare?
Sinwar’s legacy: a symbol of unity and stability of the resistance
Yahya Sinwar’s legacy goes beyond an individual personality and is reflected in the discourse of global resistance. He transformed the Palestinian resistance into a comprehensive and global discourse for Islam. The analogy of Gaza to Karbala and Ashura in his statements is a sign of the spiritual and strategic depth of his message. The heroic testimony of Sinwar, who resisted despite severe injuries in a breathless, hours-long fight with dozens of Zionists, refuted the widespread lies about “hiding in tunnels” or “using human shields.” The official Hamas statement on the anniversary of his martyrdom emphasizes this point: The flames of the Al-Aqsa storm will never be extinguished; the blood of leaders paves the way for generations. Sinwar, like Hajj Qassem Soleimani and Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, became a “global figure”; a hero who embodied freedom and was called the architect of the moral defeat of the Zionist regime.
Fulfillment of promises: from the release of prisoners to global revolution
A year after his martyrdom, Sinwar’s promises have become reality. The prisoners will be freed; this statement was embodied in the historic exchange of the “Storm of Freedoms,” during which 1968 Palestinian prisoners, including those serving life sentences, were released in exchange for 20 live prisoners and the bodies of Zionist prisoners. The exchange was called “loyalty to the promise of Sinwar” by Israel’s Channel 7. Hamas stated: The enemy failed and agreed to a ceasefire. Sinwar’s other promise to “turn the world against Israel” was also fulfilled; from massive student demonstrations in the United States and global support to a change in viewpoints. In the UK, negative views of the Zionist regime have increased by 61% since 2013. By exposing the Zionist regime’s “mask of victimhood”, Sinwar has turned it into a symbol of global genocide, similar to what Vietnam was for the US or Algeria for France.