Two Hamas officials told the BBC discussions to choose a successor for the group’s leader Yahya Sinwar, whose killing was confirmed on Thursday, will begin very soon.
The officials said that Khalil al-Hayya, Sinwar’s deputy and the group’s most senior official outside Gaza, is considered a strong candidate.
Al-Hayya, who is based in Qatar, currently leads the Hamas delegation in ceasefire talks between the group and Israel, and possesses a deep knowledge, connection and understanding of the situation in Gaza.
On Monday, a Hamas official told the BBC that the movement is likely to keep the identity of its new leader secret for security reasons.
The movement did the same thing in 2003 following the assassination of then Hamas chief, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, by Israel and that of his successor, Dr Abdel Aziz al-Rantisi.
Hamas intends to elect a new leader in March of next year but until then it will be run by a five-member committee.
The committee will be made up of Khalil al-Hayya, Khaled Meshaal, Zaher Jabarin, Muhammad Darwish, head of the Shura Council, and a fifth individual whose identity remains undisclosed.
The official indicated that Khalil al-Hayya has assumed responsibility for most political and foreign affairs in addition to his direct oversight of Gaza-related matters and is effectively the acting head of the movement.
The official added that Hamas had been surprised by the way Yahya Sinwar had been killed last week as their understanding had been that he was in a much more secure location at the time of his assassination.
Sinwar’s death came just two months after the killing of former leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.
A senior Hamas official had described Sinwar as the architect of the 7 October attacks, emphasising that his appointment was intended as a bold message of defiance against Israel.
Since July, ceasefire negotiations have stalled, and many believe that Sinwar’s leadership was a significant obstacle to any ceasefire deal.
Despite the killing of Sinwar, a senior Hamas official reiterated to the BBC that the movement’s conditions for accepting a ceasefire and the release of Israeli hostages have not changed.
Hamas continues to demand a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, an end to hostilities, the transfer of humanitarian aid, and the reconstruction of the war-torn territory – conditions that Israel has categorically rejected, insisting that Hamas must surrender.
When questioned about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s call for Hamas to give up its weapons and surrender, officials from the movement responded: “It is impossible for us to surrender.
“We are fighting for the freedom of our people, and we will not accept surrender. We will fight until the last bullet and the last soldier, just as Sinwar did.”
The assassination of Sinwar was one of the most significant losses for the organisation in decades. However, despite the challenges of replacing him, Hamas has a history of enduring leadership losses since the 1990s.
While Israel has succeeded in killing most of Hamas’s leaders and founders, the movement has proven resilient in its capacity to find new ones.
Amid this crisis, questions linger regarding the fate of Israeli hostages held in Gaza and who will be responsible for their safety and protection. On Monday the Hamas official told the BBC that the group still had the ability to hold the hostages.
In this context, Mohammed Sinwar, Yahya Sinwar’s brother, has emerged as a pivotal figure. He is believed to be leading the remaining armed groups of Hamas and may play a crucial role in shaping the future of the movement in Gaza.
