Hamas Officially Confirms Death of Sinwar: "Resistance Will Not Cease"

"Enemies, Thinking They Can Stop Resistance Is Delusion"

Palestinian armed faction Hamas officially confirmed the death of its top political leader Yahya Sinwar on the 18th (local time). Hamas stated in a press release that "Yahya Sinwar, the commander of the 'Al-Aqsa Flood' operation battle, has become a martyr."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Regarding Sinwar, Hamas said, "He devoted his soul to God on the path of Palestinian liberation," and "He proudly defended the Gaza land firmly on the front lines against the occupying forces (Israel)."

Hamas emphasized that "the hostages will not return unless the attacks on Gaza stop and our heroic prisoners in the occupation prisons are released," stressing that without a ceasefire and prisoner exchange negotiations, Israeli hostages will not be freed.

Hamas's military wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, stated separately, "We will march toward the great martyr Sinwar," pledging, "For God, on the path to liberate Palestine, let us shed blood together with the mujahideen (Islamic warriors) to become martyrs." They added, "It is delusional to think that the resistance's flame can be extinguished by assassinating the leader," emphasizing, "Our jihad (holy war) will not stop until Palestine is liberated and the last Zionist (Israeli) is expelled."

Lebanon's Iran-backed armed group Hezbollah also issued a memorial statement that afternoon, saying, "The great leader Yahya Sinwar has become a martyr on the road to Al-Quds (the Arabic name for Jerusalem)."

The Israeli military killed three Hamas members in a building in the southern Gaza city of Rafah on the 16th and announced the next day, after DNA testing, that one of them was Sinwar. Sinwar was the mastermind and leader of the surprise Israeli attack on October 7 last year, which Hamas calls the 'Al-Aqsa Flood' operation. Sinwar was Hamas's Gaza Strip leader and was elected as the top Hamas chief after the assassination of Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on July 31.