There is no doubt that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar has a good reason to be satisfied with the headlines that have been circulating in Israeli news and newspapers in recent days. It's exactly what he had hoped for. For a man who speaks Hebrew fluently due to the many years he spent in Israeli prison, and closely follows every piece of information coming out of Israel, it is important to hear what is being said about him.
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He listens and sees what is happening in the Israeli media, devouring every report and interpretation that emerges. This helps him read Israel, and especially understand how Israel interprets him.
The reports that he met with some of the Israeli captives in a hidden place and supposedly reassured them by saying, "You are protected here" are, in his view, designed to help him twice. Firstly, this helps shed the reputation of a ruthless mass murderer and helps him gain some empathy after the "demonization campaign against him," and secondly, it presents him as someone who controls the events and manages things with a cool demeanor.
This drama, in which he suddenly appears in a basement and speaks with women and children in an authoritative voice, is like a scene taken right out of a horror movie. For Sinwar, who seeks this action and enjoys it, it's good for his reputation.
Video: Hamas propaganda video on the release of Israeli captives on November 28, 2023
But along with that, he is not naive. He knows that the attack on Oct. 7 has made Israel act like a madman and that this time things will be different in how it responds. This means that he is also busy with survival, not necessarily of Hamas as an organization but of himself. The fact that he has been hiding since the beginning of the war shows that he wants to survive but it can also be reversed, and the moment he sees an opportunity to come out to get another image of victory, he may do so. Palestinian sources have described him as a "control freak."
We have already seen that Sinwar knows how to manipulate well and is an expert in broadcasting confusing messages. He would have preferred not to join the ranks of Hamas leaders and "the martyrs" who were killed by Israel, but on the other hand, he doesn't care if it happens, Palestinian sources.
In his view, he has already cemented his place in "Palestinian history" as someone who hurt Israel and humiliated it in the harshest way since the establishment of the state. What remains for him now is to delay as much as possible the "death penalty" that has already been imposed on him, and the way there involves buying time during the lull in fighting.
Although he himself desires a long-term ceasefire with Israel and sees it as a convenient way to end the war, he does not give Israel the pleasure of having an easy task. If he can disturb, abuse, and provoke in the meantime, why not? From his perspective, it is even desirable. Perhaps the only card left in his hands is the Israeli captives. Therefore, as someone on borrowed time, it is not surprising that he continues to allow himself to taunt Israel and engage in endless harassment and provocation.
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