Hamas announced on Tuesday that it had appointed Gaza-based leader Yayha Sinwar as its new leader to replace political leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed while attending a presidential inauguration in Tehran last week.
Sinwar, who Hamas believes to be the mastermind behind the Oct. 7 terror attacks that killed 1,200 Israelis, is thought to have been hiding out in underground tunnels in the Gaza Strip, possibly surrounding Israeli hostages as human shields.
The Israel Times report:
Sinwar was selected by Hamas’ 50-member Shura Council, an advisory body made up of officials elected by Hamas members in its four branches: Gaza, the West Bank, the Expatriate Territories and security prisoners held in Israeli prisons.
“Sinwar is now officially the most powerful person in Hamas,” Palestinian analyst Ohad Hemo told Channel 12. “In essence he already was, but now it’s official.”
“This is a show of confidence from a terror group whose leadership is rapidly shrinking,” Hemmo added. “It returns Hamas’ formal centre of power to Gaza” although in recent years much of its official leadership, including Haniyeh and Khaled Mashaal, has been abroad.
Sinwal has led a strange and violent life. He was saved by an Israeli doctor who had saved his life from a brain tumor while he was in prison in Israel. After his release, he set out again to kill as many Israelis as he could.
Sinwar may have had the backing of the Shura Council, but there are reports of growing discontent among Gazans who are attacking Israel without provocation and bearing the brunt of the war.
One advantage Sinwar has over his predecessors is that he is physically in Gaza, rather than in a five-star hotel in Doha, Qatar, or a villa in Turkey, where many of Hamas’ other leaders have become billionaires from aid and smuggling.
Choosing Sinwar also carries risks for the terrorist group: Israel could locate him at any time, he cannot easily contact other members of the group, and if he is killed or captured, Hamas will again be leaderless.
Joel B. Pollack is executive editor of Breitbart News. Breitbart News Sunday The show airs Sunday nights from 7 to 10 p.m. (4 to 7 p.m. ET) on SiriusXM Patriot. He is the author of “Agenda: What Trump Should Do in His First 100 Days,” which is available for preorder on Amazon. He also wrote,Trumpian virtue: The lessons and legacy of Donald Trump’s presidency” is available on Audible. He is the 2018 recipient of the Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter. Joel Pollack.
