While in prison, Yahya Sinwar wrote The Thorn and the Carnation , a blend of fact and fiction that begins after the 1967 Arab Israeli war. The book chronicles the rise of the Palestinian resistance and Sinwars life, starting with the martyrdom of the protagonists father and uncle at the hands of Israeli soldiers.
Through intellectual debate, wielding stones as weapons and unwavering spirit, the book portrays figures modelled on Palestine Liberation Organisation members and Hamass founder, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, disguised as Ibrahim in the narrative and the perseverance of the resistance against Israel which places Palestinians under constant surveillance and harsh military threat and action.
In 2024, Sinwar rose to leadership as Hamass political chief following the assassination of his predecessor, Ismail Haniyeh, in an Israeli strike in Tehran, Iran. Haniyeh, who had been spearheading Hamass international diplomacy since 7 October 2023, worked persistently towards a ceasefire in Gaza. Sinwar, widely recognised as the architect behind the 7 October attack, known as Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, now confronts the monumental task of leading through the escalating violence and genocide. His appointment symbolises Hamass refusal to yield. Israel and its allies see Sinwar as a primary adversary, yet his rise highlights the movements defiance against Israeli pressure.
The book vividly portrays life in a notorious Gaza prison interrogation area, referred to as the slaughterhouse. Detainees endured severe oppression and torture, which is described in vivid detail: One person sits on the detainees chest to suffocate him while pouring water over a sack on his face. Another stands on his stomach, a third forces his legs apart and sits on a chair between them, while a fourth crushes his testicles. Meanwhile, two others each hold one of his legs. These brutal acts are accompanied by relentless interrogation, verbal abuse and insults.
Sinwar goes so far as to expose the harsh reality faced by prisoners under administrative detention. Twenty inmates are crammed into a 15 by 25 square metre room with one toilet in the corner, making sleep nearly impossible. They lie side by side, unable to turn over or sleep on their backs because of the lack of space. Meals are scarce and nutritionally inadequate, often consisting of little more than vegetable broth, which occasionally contains vegetables. In the courtyard, where the roof is covered with barbed wire, prisoners are forced to walk in a circle with their hands behind their backs, heads bowed. Guards, armed with sticks, stand ready to beat anyone who speaks or even raises their head. These intolerable conditions have driven prisoners to resort to open-ended hunger strikes, enduring starvation to pressure the guards into granting basic rights. The guards eventually gave in, aware that failing to do so could result in prisoner deaths, which would bring international scrutiny and increase pressure on Israel in global forums.
