Yehya al-Sinwar, the head of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, has been chosen to replace the late Ismail Haniyeh as leader of the Palestinian militant group.
Al-Sinwar’s promotion within Iran-backed Hamas was announced on Telegram on Tuesday.
He is accused of being a mastermind of the October 7 attacks into southern Israel that killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took around 250 people hostage.
But despite Israel’s nearly 10-month air and ground offensive in Gaza, al-Sinwar has seemingly eluded the Israeli forces trying to hunt him down.
Qatar-based Haniyeh was killed nearly a week ago in a targeted attack as he visited Tehran for the inauguration of Iran’s new president.
Iran and its allies have promised harsh retaliation against Israel in response, sparking fears of a wider regional war.
