Ismail Haniyeh was the international face of Hamas
During the first Intifada in the late 1980s, Ismail Haniyeh joined Hamas and rose rapidly through its ranks. As the face of Hamas, he played a crucial role in mediation efforts. The status of further talks with the terrorist group remains uncertain following his death.
The killing of Ismail Haniyeh leaves Hamas without its most prominent and visible leader outside the Gaza Strip. Haniyeh was a key figure in the Islamic terror organization for decades. During the ongoing war with Israel in Gaza, he was a pivotal figure for international mediators in attempts to broker a ceasefire and prisoner exchange. The future of these negotiations is now entirely uncertain.
Haniyeh was born in 1963 in the Shatti refugee camp in Gaza and grew up in poverty. His parents were expelled from Askalan, which later became the southern Israeli town of Ashkelon. He joined Hamas as a young man during the first Palestinian uprising against Israeli occupation in the late 1980s. In the following years, he served several prison sentences in Israeli jails. He returned to Gaza in 1993.
He soon made a name for himself as a close confidant of spiritual Hamas leader Ahmed Yassin, who was killed in a targeted Israeli airstrike in 2004. After Hamas' victory over the rival Palestinian Fatah movement in the 2006 elections, he briefly served as Palestinian Authority Prime Minister. In 2017, he led a Hamas delegation to meet with Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Lavish Life in Qatar
Haniyeh had become a political figurehead and was soon added to the U.S.'s global list of wanted terrorists. He lived in Qatar, reportedly in luxurious style with parts of his family. In April, three of his sons and four of his grandchildren were killed in a Israeli airstrike in Gaza. Israel held him responsible for the brutal Hamas terror attack on October 7, which led to the Gaza war and over 1100 deaths. Israel had also threatened to eliminate Hamas' entire leadership.
Within Hamas' leadership, Haniyeh was seen as a more realist voice - and the face of Hamas diplomacy in the Middle East. Compared to Gaza Strip Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and his deputy Mohammed Deif, he was a pragmatist. Haniyeh played a crucial role in negotiating with Israel through intermediaries Qatar, Egypt, and the U.S. It remains unclear whether and how these negotiations will continue. A successor will have to be found for Haniyeh. This would not be the first time for Hamas.
Following Haniyeh's demise, the political landscape in the Gaza Strip might undergo significant changes. Despite his expulsion from Askalan, which is now an Israeli town, Haniyeh was born and rose through the ranks of Hamas in the Gaza Strip during the first Intifada.
The ongoing conflict between Hamas and Israel in the Gaza Strip could see a shift in dynamics without Haniyeh, as he had often served as a key figure in ceasefire negotiations and prisoner exchanges.
