The new leader of Hamas

In a surprising but revealing announcement, the terrorist organization Hamas recently named Yahya Sinwar—the mastermind of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack against Israel—as its new leader after the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in a presumed Israeli strike in Iran. Sinwar, 61, spent most of his adult life in Israeli prisons before being released in a 2011 prisoner swap only to become Hamas’ military leader in Gaza a few years later.

He is now not only the leader of Hamas in Gaza but the ultimate leader of the group, controlling the military and political wings.

This choice reveals that the terrorists have formally elevated militancy over diplomacy, especially as Sinwar is known to be a hard-liner and identified as a “cruel, authoritative, influential” leader who has “unusual abilities of endurance” and an ability to “carry crowds.” This is evident as he not only led the brutal attack against Israel but also showed resistance to any compromise in negotiations with Israel in the past 10 months.

His appointment as top leader of Hamas is a show of defiance and an act of provocation.

In terms of defiance, Hamas is arguably telling the world it’s not backing down and that the “resistance” will continue. Against all hopes for peace and a cease-fire, the radicals chose their top militant ideologue—a tyrant who would hardly accept a compromised position, even to ease the horrific situations for Palestinians. For 10 months, Sinwar has largely controlled negotiations with Israel, without whose approval, even if other Hamas leaders yield, no deal could be made. Additionally, choosing Sinwar sends a clear “we don’t care” message to the international community, especially as prosecutors at the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Sinwar on charges of war crimes over his role in the Oct. 7 attack.

As for provocation, choosing Sinwar to lead Hamas is an inflammatory declaration against Israel. He is the most wanted leader of Hamas, with Israel putting a $400,000 bounty on his head. Israel did this precisely because of Sinwar’s role in orchestrating the unprecedented attack that led to the killing of 1,200 people and the taking of about 250 hostages. Worse, it is well-known that Sinwar is closely connected to and supported by Iran to consolidate and build up Hamas militarily.

But is choosing Sinwar to lead Hamas really bad news?

Yes, without a doubt. This will complicate negotiations on two crucial levels, one with Israel and another with the Palestinians themselves, resulting in huge consequences.

First, Sinwar’s elevation as the main leader of Hamas makes any possible negotiations with Israel significantly more difficult because he is known to seek unreasonable demands with little or no compromise.

We aren’t assuming this, for he already said it.

In his first messages after he became the top leader of Hamas, Sinwar told the mediators—mostly Egyptians and Qataris—to relay to Israel his conditions, which included a complete withdrawal from Gaza by Israel and a cease-fire agreement that included the release of high-profile Palestinian detainees. He vehemently rejected the deployment of a multinational force in Gaza after the war to keep the peace until elections could be held. He demands total control of Gaza without compromise.

If anyone thinks these are simply negotiating tactics, wait for it, as he has more.

There are likely difficult days ahead with a negotiator like Sinwar, who seems to care very little about the miserable circumstances of his own people in Gaza.

Second, Sinwar’s elevation creates serious doubts about any future harmony within the Palestinian leadership, as he is openly against the official Palestinian Authority. This is evident as he declared, after becoming Hamas’ leader, that he was “uncompromisingly” opposed to the Palestinian Authority taking control of Gaza after the war. This is not a new position: When some Arab leaders sought to arrange a reconciliation meeting between him and the Palestinian Authority, Sinwar called such a meeting shameful, saying, “As long as fighters are still standing and we have not lost the war, such contacts should be immediately terminated.”

Sinwar’s elevation suggests gloomy days ahead in any negotiations between Hamas and Israel and any reconciliation between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority. Since, theoretically, the Palestinian Authority is open to two-state negotiations while Hamas explicitly seeks the annihilation of Israel, there is hardly any light at the end of the tunnel for the troubled region. Sinwar’s appointment to lead Hamas is bad news for humanity, especially for wounded and suffering Palestinians and definitely for the Israeli hostages.