Hamas and the US-sanctioned Samidoun network paid tribute to slain Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar on the second anniversary of his killing, with the network urging supporters to escalate protests and build a “global Intifada.”
In a statement issued Friday, Hamas said Sinwar’s death had become “new fuel for the Flood,” referring to its name for the October 7 attack. The group praised footage of his final moments, showing him wounded and throwing a stick at an Israeli drone, portraying the scene as a symbol of continued defiance.
Samidoun called Sinwar an “immortal symbol” and urged supporters to intensify protests, mobilization and direct action. The United States sanctioned the network in 2024, accusing it of fundraising for the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, while Canada listed it as a terrorist entity.
Hamas names new leader: Khalil al-Hayya succeeds Sinwar as political chief
The Palestinian Resistance Committees also issued a tribute, claiming Sinwar had defeated Israel in prison and on the battlefield. The group pledged to continue its campaign until Israel’s destruction.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu marked the anniversary by crediting Israeli soldiers and his insistence on continuing operations in Rafah. He said Sinwar would have survived had Israel stopped the war, withdrawn from Gaza and accepted Hamas’s conditions.
Israel’s Diaspora Minister: ‘Al-Sharaa should be eliminated like Nasrallah and Sinwar’
Sinwar, a mastermind of the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack that resulted in the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust, was killed during an encounter with Israeli troops in Rafah on October 16, 2024. Israel confirmed his death the following day.