JNS
The killing of Hamas senior leader Ismail Haniyeh in a July 31 bombing assassination attributed to Israel left a significant vacuum in leadership.
Yahya Sinwar, Hamas senior leader in the Gaza Strip and the architect of the Oct. 7 massacre, has been chosen to lead the terrorist organization's so-called political bureau, replacing Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed in Tehran on July 31.
"Hamas announces the selection of leader Yahya Sinwar as the head of the political bureau of the movement," the Islamist terror group said in an official statement cited by Arabic media on Tuesday night.
As Hamas published the statement, air-raid sirens were activated in Israeli towns near Gaza, with the Israel Defense Forces confirming that rockets were launched from the Strip. No casualties were reported.
Last week's killing of Haniyeh in a bombing assassination attributed to Israel left a significant vacuum in Hamas's leadership. Reports had previously indicated that the terrorist organization was considering the appointment of a relatively unknown successor, at least temporarily.
Haniyeh was viewed by some in Jerusalem as an obstacle to a hostages-for-terrorists ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel.
Sinwar, 61, is widely believed to have masterminded the Oct. 7 assault, in which Hamas terrorists murdered some 1,200 people and wounded thousands while raping, torturing, burning and mutilating their victims. Terrorists also took more than 250 hostages back to Gaza.
‘A cold disregard for human life’
On Oct. 14, Israel Defense Forces Spokesperson Lt. Col. Richard Hecht told journalists that Sinwar and his command team "are in our sights."
"Yahya Sinwar is the face of evil. He is the mastermind behind this, like [Osama] bin Laden was. He built his career on murdering Palestinians when he understood they were collaborators. That's how he became known as the butcher of Khan Yunis [in southern Gaza]," said Hecht.
Sinwar was convicted on multiple murder counts by an Israeli court and sentenced to five life sentences, which he was supposed to serve until his death. However, in October 2011, he was released from prison—having served 22 years—as part of the Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange.
Following his release, Sinwar gained power and popularity within Hamas, becoming its Gaza leader in 2017 by defeating Haniyeh in a vote. Sinwar is now believed to be hiding in the tunnels underneath the Gaza Strip, surrounded by Israeli hostages used as human shields.
According to U.S. military intelligence, Sinwar has been facing internal calls for Hamas to lay down its arms because it is being blamed for the growing suffering in Gaza after ten months of fighting the IDF.
However, the terror leader, who enjoys good relations with Iran, has reportedly pushed Hamas to take a hardline stance in hostage talks.
In February, during a push for a truce deal, Sinwar sent a message to Hamas officials telling them to avoid concessions and continue to push unrealistic demands as mounting "high civilian casualties" would place global pressure on Israel, The Wall Street Journal reported in June.
"We have the Israelis right where we want them," he said in a note sent to officials looking to close a deal via Qatari and Egyptian mediators.
The Journal reviewed "dozens of messages" sent by Sinwar in which "he's shown a cold disregard for human life and made clear he believes Israel has more to lose from the war than Hamas," the newspaper said.
