Following the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in an Israeli strike, a set of handwritten instructions has emerged, allegedly outlining his final orders for handling Israeli hostages in Gaza. Palestinian media reports indicate Sinwar’s directives advised his fighters to “protect and care” for hostages as leverage, referring to them as Hamas’s “pressure card.”
Scrawled across three pages, the notes reportedly urge fighters to “secure the lives of enemy prisoners” as bargaining chips. Citing the Prophet’s teachings on mercy, Sinwar’s writing invokes the duty to “visit the sick, feed the hungry, and free the captive.” The documents reportedly also contain a list of hostages’ names, ages, and military backgrounds, offering a glimpse into Sinwar’s vision of hostages as pivotal assets in Hamas’s struggle.
Sinwar’s handwritten notes come amid conflicting reports on Hamas’s treatment of hostages. Israeli negotiator Gershon Baskin had previously claimed Sinwar instructed Hamas fighters to kill captives should he be killed, a narrative now contradicted by Sinwar’s alleged directives, which stress preservation and leverage.
Experts warn Sinwar’s death could destabilize Hamas’s leadership, complicating negotiations for hostage release and potentially intensifying resistance among decentralized cells in Gaza.