Khalil al-Hayya new Hamas chief

Yahya Sinwar died two years ago

Born in 1960, Hayya survived an Israeli assassination attempt in Doha last year, though one of his sons was killed in the strike.

Cairo: Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas on Monday elected Khalil al-Hayya, its lead negotiator in indirect ceasefire talks with Israel, as head of its political bureau.

Hayya succeeds Yahya al-Sinwar, who was killed by Israeli forces in Gaza a year after Israel accused him of masterminding the October 7, 2023, attacks. Since Sinwar’s death, Hamas has been led by a five-member leadership council headed by Mohammed Darwish.

A senior Hamas official told AFP Hayya defeated former chief Khaled Meshaal by an overwhelming majority and will formally assume office next week. 

The political bureau will meet in Istanbul to restructure the group’s leadership, after which the current leadership council will be dissolved.

Hamas’s armed wing, the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Briga­des, declared its full support for Hayya.