After two days of extensive negotiations in Doha, Hamas has appointed Yahya Sinwar as its new overall leader, succeeding Ismail Haniyeh, who was assassinated in Tehran last week.
Since 2017, Sinwar has led Hamas within the Gaza Strip and will now head its political wing. The decision to elevate Sinwar was unanimous among Hamas’s leadership, according to a senior official who spoke to the BBC.
This appointment comes amid heightened tensions in the Middle East, as Iran and its allies threaten retaliation for Haniyeh’s killing, which they attribute to Israel. Israel has not yet commented on these claims.
During the two-day discussions in Doha, Hamas leaders considered various candidates for the top position. Ultimately, only two names were proposed: Yahya Sinwar and Mohammed Hassan Darwish, the head of the General Shura Council, which elects Hamas’s Politburo. The council chose Sinwar unanimously, marking a decisive shift in the movement’s leadership.
A Hamas official described the selection as “a message of defiance to Israel,” emphasizing that Sinwar represents a more hardline stance compared to Haniyeh, who was seen as more pragmatic and open to political solutions.
Sinwar, who is on Israel’s most-wanted list, is believed to have orchestrated the October 7, 2023 attacks that resulted in over 1,200 deaths and the abduction of 251 individuals into Gaza. Israeli officials have condemned his appointment, with Foreign Minister Israel Katz and IDF spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari calling for his elimination.
Sinwar has been largely in hiding since the October attacks, reportedly residing underground in Gaza. Former US National Security Council official Javed Ali noted that Sinwar’s appointment could complicate ceasefire and hostage negotiations due to his reportedly inflexible nature.
Born in Khan Younis refugee camp in 1962, Sinwar founded Hamas’s security service Majd in the late 1980s, targeting alleged collaborators with Israel. After multiple arrests and a lengthy prison sentence, he was released in a 2011 prisoner exchange for Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. He has served as head of Hamas’s political bureau in Gaza since 2017 and is listed by the US as an international terrorist.
