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Hamas names new leader
Hamas elected Khalil al-Hayya as head of its political bureau on Monday, succeeding Yahya Sinwar, who was killed by Israeli forces in Gaza in October 2024 during Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip.
Anadolu Ajansı said Hayya survived several Israeli assassination attempts, including an Israeli strike on May 20, 2007 that killed eight relatives in eastern Gaza City, and it described him as a negotiator who led Hamas delegations in indirect talks mediated by Egypt, Qatar, the US and Türkiye.
The Times of Israel reported that al-Hayya defeated former Hamas chief Khaled Mashaal in the leadership contest and said a senior Hamas official told AFP that he was elected by an overwhelming majority and was expected to formally assume the role next week.
Al Jazeera reported that al-Hayya won an internal ballot in a run-off against former political leader Khaled Meshaal, Hamas said in a statement, and it described him as one of five members of the leadership council formed after the killings in 2024 of top Hamas leaders.
Anadolu Ajansı also said Israel’s war on Gaza has killed more than 73,000 Palestinians and injured over 173,000 since October 2023, while around 90% of the enclave’s civilian infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed.
Negotiations and assassination history
Al Jazeera said al-Hayya rose in importance after the killings in 2024 of top Hamas leaders Sinwar and military commander Mohammed Deif in Gaza, and Ismail Haniyeh who was assassinated during a visit to Tehran the same year.
Anadolu Ajansı described Hayya as the head of Hamas’s negotiating delegation in talks mediated by Egypt, Qatar, the US and Türkiye, and it said he insisted on ending the Israeli war, securing Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza, concluding a prisoner exchange, reopening border crossings, allowing aid into the enclave and beginning reconstruction.
The Jerusalem Post said Hayya is expected to play a crucial role going forward and noted that he is not in Gaza, meaning Hamas operatives in Gaza would continue to operate “in the shadows thus far,” benefiting from what it called an opaque leadership style.
Al Jazeera’s Nour Odeh reported from near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank that Israel describes al-Hayya as “a hawk”, someone closer to Iran than the Arab governments, than even Turkey.
The Times of Israel said the election was not transparent, quoting a Hamas source that the process was conducted through a “highly complex and secretive mechanism” because of the difficult security situation and the occupation’s assassination of several political and military leaders.
Gaza stakes and ceasefire
The election of al-Hayya comes as Hamas faces international demands to disarm and as Israel continues attacks in Gaza even after a ceasefire, with SWI swissinfo.ch reporting that Israel still controls more than 60 percent of the coastal strip.
SWI swissinfo.ch said paramedics reported an Israeli airstrike killed at least three Palestinians in a car in Khan Younis, and it added that Gaza health officials said the death toll has risen to more than 1,150 Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes since the ceasefire.
Al-Monitor reported that Palestinian political analyst Reham Owda said Hayya’s victory is a message that Hamas remains committed to armed struggle, rejects disarmament under any conditions, and intends to rebuild its military strength while preserving its alliance with Iran and the “Axis of Resistance.”
Al Jazeera said the deal reached in October 2025 failed to bring an end to frequent deadly Israeli attacks in Gaza, and it described al-Hayya as the Hamas chief negotiator when a ceasefire agreement was reached.
Al Jazeera also said Hamas has claimed it is ready to transfer the governance of Gaza to another party, while the Times of Israel reported that Hamas ceded its governmental control of Gaza to the technocratic National Committee for the Administration of Gaza headed by Ali Shaath, with the NCAG remaining based outside Gaza for months.
