Like, no seriously, the state department classified him as a terrorist until like 10 years before he died. He was already a beloved figure In his modern incarnation as we remember him now way, Way way before The US federal government ever accepted that he had actually just won and was not a terrorist anymore, but a statesman.
Freedom fighter/terrorist dichotomy aside, he definitely used terror to achieve political goals. We look upon him kindly because his cause seems just to us, and because he won.