Palestinians say drone footage shows Sinwar's 'heroic' final moments in Gaza

For oneGazan father, Yahya Sinwar's death in battle trying to beat back a drone with a stick was "how heroes die," while for others it was an example for future generations even as some lamented the ruinous cost ofthe warhe sparked with Israel.

Sinwar, the architect of Hamas's deadly Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel that triggered the conflict inGaza, was killed on Wednesday in a gunfight with Israeli forces after a year-long manhunt, and his death was announced on Thursday.

Israeli media described him as dying "like aGazadog" and many Western nations said his death may have removed a key hurdle to reaching a ceasefire.

Died armed and wounded

But the video of him masked and mortally wounded in a shell-smashed apartment trying to hurl a stick at the Israel Defence Forces drone filming him inspired pride among Palestinians.

"He died wearing a military vest, fighting with a rifle and grenades, and when he was wounded and was bleeding, he fought with a stick. This is how heroes die," said Adel Rajab, 60, a father of two inGaza.

"I have watched the video 30 times since last night, there is no better way to die," said Ali, a 30-year-old taxi driver inGaza.

"I will make this video a daily duty to watch for my sons, and my grandsons in the future," said the father of two.

Others in Khan Younis in southern Gazacalled him an "icon" of Palestinian leadership.

"An icon for us, the Palestinian people, an icon for resistance. However you measure it you'll find that he's an icon,"Abu Ahmed Abu Hashemtold CBC News on Friday.

"You can't replace someone like him,"Muhammad Al-Shawafsaid.

The attack Sinwar planned on Israeli communities a year ago killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, with another 253 dragged back toGazaas hostages, according to Israeli tallies.

Israel's subsequent war hasdevastatedGaza, killing more than 42,000 Palestinians, with another 10,000 uncounted dead thought to lie under the rubble, sayGazahealth authorities.

Dying as a'martyr' would be a 'gift,' Sinwar said

Sinwar's own words in previous speeches, saying he would rather die at Israel's hands than from a heart attack or car accident, have been repeatedly shared by Palestinians online.

"The best gift the enemy and the occupation can offer me is to assassinate me and that I go as a martyr at their hands," he had said.

Now some Palestinians are wondering whether Israel will regret allowing the fulfilment of that wish to be broadcast as a potential recruiting tool for an organization it has sworn to destroy.

"They said he was hiding inside the tunnels. They said he was keeping Israeli prisoners next to him to save his life. Yesterday, we saw that he was hunting down Israeli soldiers in Rafah, where the occupation has been operating since May," said Rasha, a displaced 42-year-old mother of four children.

WATCH | Israel confirms Hamas leader killed in Rafah:

Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar killed in Gaza, Israel confirms

3 days ago

Duration 5:22

Israel says its soldiers have killed top Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in a battle in Gaza. Sinwar was a chief architect of last year's Oct. 7 attacks in southern Israel that triggered the war in Gaza and the escalating conflicts in the Middle East.

"This is how leaders go, with a rifle in the hand. I supported Sinwar as a leader and today I am proud of him as a martyr," she added.

Fadl Naseer, in Khan Younis, said the death of Sinwar, who is widely known as Abu Ibrahim, was "very painful."

"After the martyrdom of Abu Ibrahim, there is longing for the war to end to stop this bloodshed," Naseer told CBC News.

'War will continue ... won't end soon'

A poll in September showed amajority ofGazansthought the attack was the wrong decision and a growing number of Palestinianshave questionedSinwar's willingness to launch a war that has caused them so much suffering.

Rajab, who praised Sinwar's death as heroic, said he had not supported the Oct. 7 attacks, believing Palestinians were not prepared for all-out war with Israel. But he said the manner of his death "made me proud as a Palestinian."

In bothGazaand the West Bank, where Hamas also has significant support and where fighting between Israeli occupying forces and Palestinians has increased over the past year, people wondered whether Sinwar's death would hasten the war's end.

Kholoud Abu Ghaly, in Khan Younis, said she was sure the war would end when she heard the news.

"Even after we heard yesterday that Sinwar was killed, I said we could wake up to Netanyahu saying the war will be over," Abu Ghaly told CBC News.

"People have had enough suffering, another winter is coming, we're going to enter other suffering."

In Hebron, a flashpoint West Bank city, Ala'a Hashalmoon saidkilling Sinwarwould not mean a more conciliatory leader. "What I can figure out is that who ever dies, there is someone who replaces him is more stubborn," he said.

And in Ramallah, Murad Omar, 54, said little would change on the ground. "The war will continue and it seems it won't end soon," he said.