Haaretz interview an Israeli Shin Bet officer who interrogated Hamas leader in 1988: The nature of Yahya al Sinwar’s personality

Haaretz newspaper, published on Friday, an interview with an officer in the Israeli General Security Service (Shin Bet) who was responsible for investigating the leader of Hamas movement in Gaza, Yahya al Sinwar.

The 60-year-old officer, who has been working in the Shin Bet for more than 30 years, spoke during the interview with Haaretz newspaper about the nature of Sinwar’s personality and other interesting details regarding the information he provided during the investigation.

The officer, who didn’t reveal his identity, stated that he was responsible for investigating Sinwar when he was under Israeli arrest in 1988.

The officer confirms that the Hamas leader in Gaza is a solid, educated, charismatic, intelligent, tough, and fearless man, and that he used to threaten the Israeli officers who investigated him, and repeatedly said in their ears that the world would turn against them, and he would become the investigator and they would be the ones to succeed investigate them.

The officer said that at that time, Yahya al Sinwar was a prominent activist at the Islamic University of Gaza and a student or trainee of the movement’s spiritual leader, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin.

The officer claims that an Islamic leader Abdullah Azzam suggested that Yahya al Sinwar join a new movement called “al Majd,” (Glory) whose goal is to persecute those who deviated from religion or heretics.

He pointed out that Sinwar welcomed the idea and was communicating with the rest of the movement’s members secretly through letters placed in the bathrooms at the Islamic University, directing them to the locations of weapons and including instructions regarding their future movements.

The officer says that Sinwar was part of a group of four people, including Rawhi Mushtaha, a prominent figure in the Hamas leadership.

He stated that the team maintained complete secrecy of its movements and was informing Ahmed Yassin of all its operations.

Sinwar confessed and was convicted of killing four Palestinians who allegedly cooperated with Israel in 1989.

Sinwar was arrested several times, the first in Jenin on charges of incitement to nationalist activity, and the second for killing supposed heretics.

The officer points out that Sinwar remained in prison for several months and we had forgotten about him, until the kidnapping of two Israeli soldiers occurred in 1989.

He added, “We then realized that there was a large organization in the Gaza Strip that we knew nothing about, and that it was responsible for kidnapping the two soldiers”.

He continued, saying, “At that moment, the prominent leader of Hamas, Salah Shehadeh, was also imprisoned like Sinwar, but in a different case… Shehadeh was interrogated again and provided incriminating information against Sinwar, after which Sinwar was re-investigated, who learned that Shehadeh had provided information about him”.

Sinwar often made threats during his interrogations, as he revealed that in one of them he directed his words to him, saying, “You know that one day you will be the person being investigated, and I will stand here in my capacity as the government as an investigator… I will interrogate you”.

“I remember exactly how he said that to me, as a promise, and his eyes were red,” the officer said in the interview.

Sinwar didn’t show any fear of him as an interrogator, on the contrary, he was arguing with him all the time, indicating that he can read what he wrote about him after the first investigation and he still maintains it, “An exceptional personality with his merits, wisdom, and culture, and he is a very religious man, a believer, and reconciled with his words and actions”.

The officer concludes by saying, “Unfortunately, I don’t think that Israel will be able to arrest him”.

Sinwar is considered the most prominent figure that Israel held responsible for the October 7 attack, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described him as a “dead man walking,” intending to kill him.

Israel estimates that Sinwar is still in Khan Yunis, or rather in one of the tunnels under the city, according to the Jerusalem Post and The Times of Israel.