Hamas has elected Khalil al-Hayya as the new leader of the organization after winning the second round of internal voting. He will replace Yahya Sinwar, who was killed during the war with Israel in October 2024.
Khalil al-Hayya, the former deputy head of Hamas and one of the five members of its leadership council, defeated former political leader Khaled Meshaal in the final round of internal voting. The organization announced the election results in a statement on Monday.
The influence of Khalil al-Hayya significantly increased after the deaths in 2024 of the leading Hamas leaders — Yahya Sinwar, military commander Mohammed Deif, and Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed during a visit to Tehran. After these losses, Khalil al-Hayya joined the five-member leadership council — a temporary body created at the end of 2024 to manage the organization during the war.
Diplomatic role and activities in Qatar
Born in the Gaza Strip in 1960, Khalil al-Hayya has been a member of Hamas since the organization’s founding in 1987. In recent years, he has played a key diplomatic role, based primarily in Qatar, which has become one of the main centers for mediation in negotiations involving Israel, Egypt, the United States, and other parties.
Being outside the Gaza Strip, he could move freely between mediating countries without facing restrictions related to the Israeli blockade. Khalil al-Hayya also led Hamas delegations in indirect negotiations with Israel, aimed at reaching a ceasefire agreement in Gaza.
Family losses due to the war
The family of Khalil al-Hayya also suffered losses due to Israeli strikes. During the 2014 war, the house of his eldest son Usama was destroyed, killing Usama, his wife, and their three children. In September of last year, an Israeli strike on a residential complex in Doha (Qatar) also took the life of his son Humam and several other people.
Source: Al Jazeera
