Hours after Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was killed by Israeli forces, Iran commemorated him as a martyr whose vision for a liberated Palestine continues.
Mr. Sinwar, the architect of the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that sparked an ongoing war between the Jewish state and terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip, was killed by Israeli forces in Rafah on Thursday.
In a televised message announcing Shinwar's death, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: “He spoke of himself as a lion, but in reality he was hiding in a dark den, causing panic from our soldiers. “He was killed when he ran away,” he said.
In a statement, the Islamic Republic of Iran's mission to the United Nations compared Sinwar's death to the hanging of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, who was captured by U.S. forces in 2003 and later convicted of crimes against humanity. Ta.
Who is Yahya Sinwar?
Terrorist leader Yahya Sinwar speaks from the podium at the rally. Israel announced Thursday that Mr. Sinwar had been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza. (Mohammed Talatene/Photo in partnership with Getty Images)
“When U.S. forces dragged a disheveled Saddam Hussein out of his underground hole, he begged them not to kill him, even though he had a weapon.Those who saw Saddam as a model of resistance It eventually collapsed,” the statement said.
“However, the spirit of resistance will be strengthened when Muslims honor the Sinwar martyrs in their combat uniforms, standing on the battlefield facing the enemy in the open rather than in hiding,” the mission said. “He will be an example for young people and children on the path to the liberation of Palestine. As long as occupation and aggression exist, resistance will continue, because martyrs live on and are a source of inspiration.”
Israel searches for Hamas terrorist leader Yahya Shinwar: 'A dead man walking'
A demonstrator holds a placard about the murder of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar during a protest calling for a ceasefire and the immediate release of hostages held by Hamas in Tel Aviv, Israel, Thursday, October 17. (AP/Ariel Shalit)
Hamas, like Lebanon-based Hezbollah and other terrorist organizations with American blood in their veins, is considered an Iranian proxy. Both groups receive funding and training from Tehran.
Israel, in solidarity with Hamas, launched airstrikes targeting northern Israel more than a year ago, killing the top leaders of Hamas and Hezbollah.
Israel vowed to kill Shinwar at the start of its military operation against Hamas. Before Mr. Sinwar was elevated to the group's top leadership, his predecessor, Ismail Haniyeh, was killed in an attack believed to be carried out by Israel in the Iranian capital, Tehran.
One year after Hezbollah attack, Israel increases military forces, raising doubts about 'limited' operations
Speaks at a program held in response to the Iranian attack on Imam Khomeini Husseiniyah in Tehran, Iran, and the subsequent killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in the Iranian attack, October 2, 2024. Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. (Iranian Leadership Press Room/Materials/Anadolu, via Getty Images)
In response, Iran launched nearly 200 missiles toward Israel. The Jewish state has vowed to comply. For over 40 years, Iranian regime has carefully constructed a “Ring of Fire” around Israel, using various terrorist organizations to expand its influence throughout the Middle East.
Former Mossad intelligence chief Amnon Sofrin told Fox News Digital: “There is a huge clock in the center of Tehran that was installed in 2015, and it shows how much time is left in Israel, until 2040.'' It shows that Israel will be destroyed in the coming years.” They had been preparing for this moment, scouting Hezbollah in southern Lebanon and claiming they would support Hezbollah if it collapsed. [Israel Defense Forces] The IDF entered Lebanon.
“However,” Sofrin added, “we are already inside Lebanon and pro-Iranian militias are not yet providing support. Iran has ordered other proxy forces in the region to join the ground war. No – at least not yet.”
On Thursday, Prime Minister Netanyahu vowed to end the “reign of terror that the Iranian regime has imposed on its own people and on the peoples of Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Yemen.”
Hezbollah Radwan terrorists train in southern Lebanon near the Israeli border. (AP/Hassan Ammar)
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Earlier this month, a pro-Iranian militia in Iraq launched an explosive-laden drone at an Israeli military base in the Golan Heights, killing two Israeli soldiers and injuring 24 others.
Fox News Digital’s Efrat Lachter contributed to this report.
