Who is Yahya Sinwar?
- On Tuesday, August 6, Yahya Sinwar was named as Hamas’ new political bureau chief following the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran last week.
- Sinwar has been one of Hamas’ Gaza-based leaders since 2017 and is alleged to have been hiding in the enclave since the outbreak of the war. Despite Hamas’s bylaws stating that the political chief should reside outside of Gaza, he has been backed unanimously to assume the position until internal elections scheduled for next year.
- Sinwar, 61, was born in a Gaza refugee camp south of Khan Younis in 1962. He is widely seen as the mastermind of the October 7 attacks and is reported to be the highest-ranking member of Hamas after Haniyeh.
- Sinwar has spent over two decades in Israeli prisons. During his imprisonment, he is reported to have learned Hebrew, translating tens of thousands of pages of contraband autobiographies from Hebrew to Arabic.
- He was last released from Israeli prison in 2011 during a prisoner swap. Since then, he has played a leading role in Hamas, with the United States declaring him a “specially designated global terrorist” in 2014.
- Sinwar is one of the officials, alongside Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, to have been named in the ICC arrest warrant released in May.
- While Israel has not officially claimed responsibility for Haniyeh’s assassination, Iran has vowed that Israel will “pay a heavy price.” Additionally, Lebanon’s Hezbollah has threatened retaliation for Israeli airstrikes in Beirut that killed Hamas military commander Fouad Shukur on July 31.
Outlook on Ceasefire Negotiations
- The killing of Haniyeh, the lead Hamas negotiator for the ceasefire talks, has cast further doubt on the prospect of a Gaza ceasefire, as he was described as a more pragmatic negotiator in support of a deal.
- Due to his close ties with the political wing of Hamas, Sinwar is viewed as a hardliner who is reportedly more extreme than his predecessor.
- Sinwar’s appointment is likely to draw Hamas closer to Iran and decrease the chance of a ceasefire.
- Further, his location within Gaza is likely to complicate negotiations. Sinwar has entered hiding since October 7, and negotiators report that it takes days for him to receive updates.
- Over the past weeks, ceasefire negotiations have stalled. Hamas demands a guarantee that the initial ceasefire will continue as the terms of the hostage exchange deal are worked out, whereas Israel has threatened to resume military operations after a partial release.
- On August 5, Israel suggested negotiations were suspended until Iranian retaliation for the killing of Haniyeh.
- On August 7, Hamas spokesperson Osama Hamdan stated that negotiations will continue under Sinwar.
- Despite Haniyeh’s assassination and the appointment of Sinwar, the White House stated that the US remains engaged in “intense diplomacy” on ceasefire talks, with National Security Council spokesman John Kirby stating “We are as close as we think we have ever been [to a deal].”
(Banner image: Fars Media Corporation)
