Hamas on Monday named Khalil al-Hayya, who served as chief negotiator for the terrorist organization during the Israel-Hamas war, as the new head of its political bureau.
He is the first person appointed to the position since Yahya Sinwar’s death in October 2024.
Al-Hayya, the group’s exiled Gaza chief and top negotiator, has become an increasingly central figure in the leadership of Hamas since the deaths of Sinwar and Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed in Iran in July 2024.
Hayya has become increasingly influential in the terror group as other top Hamas officials have been killed in Israeli strikes, among them Ismail Haniyeh on a visit to Iran and Yahya Sinwar in the Gaza Strip.
Hayya left Gaza several years ago, serving as a Hamas point person for ties with the Arab and Islamic worlds and basing himself in Qatar. He accompanied Haniyeh to Tehran for the visit in July, during which he was assassinated.
He has been cited as saying the October 7 attacks had been meant as a limited operation by Hamas to capture “a number of soldiers” to swap for jailed Palestinians.
“But the Zionist army unit completely collapsed,” he said in comments published by the Hamas-linked Palestinian Information Center, referring to Israel’s military.
He has said the attack succeeded in bringing the Palestinian issue back into international focus.
Source:
www.jpost.com
