Round of Appointments in the Hamas Leadership

Despite the war and the extensive targeted killings, Hamas reports that in recent days it has completed a round of internal elections under a heavy veil of secrecy across its three districts — Gaza, the West Bank, and abroad — as follows:

“Shadow” leadership in Gaza

Due to fears of assassinations, Hamas has not published the names of the new leaders inside the Strip. The name of Ali al-Amoudi (a close associate of Sinwar, who survived assassination attempts) has emerged as the figure expected to manage the organization inside Gaza.

Rebuilding the Political Bureau

After most members of the leadership were killed (including Sinwar, Mohammed Deif, and Mushtaha), the organization is establishing a new “General Political Bureau” composed of 18 members, which will lead Hamas over the next four years. The race for head of the Political Bureau (replacing Haniyeh and Sinwar) has narrowed to two main figures: Khalil al-Hayya (representing the Iranian axis) versus Khaled Mashal (representing the external leadership).

Gaza representatives from abroad

Following the killing of most Political Bureau members in Gaza, representation of the Strip in the General Political Bureau will likely be filled by senior Gaza officials residing overseas, such as Basem Naim and Ghazi Hamad (who are based abroad).

Hamas is attempting to demonstrate continuity of command despite the heavy blows, but is choosing to operate covertly — operational control on the ground is being transferred to anonymous “shadow” commanders, while the representative face of the Strip is shifting to Qatar.