Hamas chooses Gaza military head Yahya Sinwar to replace Ismail Haniyeh as political leader

Sinwar’s selection indicates a continued militant stance by the group and cooperation with Iran

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The Hamas terrorist organization on Tuesday named Yahya Sinwar as the replacement for Ismail Haniyeh, to head the group’s “political bureau.”

The group released a statement Tuesday evening naming Sinwar as “head of the movement’s political bureau.”

“The Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) announces the selection of Leader Yahya Sinwar as head of the movement’s political bureau, succeeding its martyr and leader Ismail Haniyeh, may Allah have mercy on him,” the statement said.

Sinwar, head of the military wing since 2017, became leader of the terror group in Gaza after Haniyeh moved to Qatar to maintain the political offices in the Gulf nation.

Sinwar, along with Mohammed Deif, who was killed by the Israeli Air Force strike last month, are regarded as the primary architects of the Oct. 7 Hamas invasion and terror attack on southern Israeli communities that border Gaza.

Hamas said Sinwar was selected to replace Haniyeh “after extensive consultations and deliberations in the movement's leading institutions.” It is believed that this refers to Hamas’ Shura Council, a secretive body composed of officials elected by Hamas members comprised of its four chapters: Gaza, the West Bank, the diaspora, and Palestinian security prisoners in Israel.

Preliminary reports suggested Hamas might have selected previous Hamas politburo leader Khaled Mashaal, Khalil al-Hayya, a high ranking official close to Haniyeh, or Mohamed Ismail Darwish, who had been leading the Shura Council since October. Darwish’ predecessor, Osama Mazini, was eliminated by the IDF soon after the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attack.

Sinwar is known to be a proponent with strong ties to Iran, and his appointment suggests the Shura Council is intent on continuing the war against Israel with support from the regime.

The Hamas leader in Gaza has not been seen publicly since before the Oct. 7 massacre and is believed to be hiding in tunnels beneath Khan Younis or Rafah. IDF officials believe he has surrounded himself with a group of Israeli hostages as human shields.

Sinwar has been a part of Hamas since its founding in 1987, helping set up the the terror group's internal security apparatus, and leading an intelligence unit dedicated to discovering, and often killing, Palestinians accused of collaborating with Israel.

After his release during the Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange in 2011, Sinwar, who was serving four life imprisonments for terrorist activities leading to the death of Israeli, became a senior commander of the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas.

After Haniyeh left for Qatar, Sinwar became the highest-ranking Hamas leader in Gaza, effectively managing all of its operations in Gaza.

Sinwar is a firm believer in armed struggle against Israel and is known to hold to a messianic and apocalyptic view of that struggle, believing that the group has a role to play in the Islamic “end of days.”