As soon as the dust settled of the heinous crime in northern Tehran, which revealed the martyrdom of the great national-Hamas leader, Ismail Haniyeh “Abu al-Abd,” the relevant capitals, in the region and the world, were ablaze with speculation and predictions about who would succeed him in leading the movement that today efficiently and competently leads Palestinian politics and the field.
The ropes of speculation extended to include most, if not all, of the movement’s political bureau members, those we know and those we don’t know. Hamas surprised everyone, and showed by choosing its leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar “Abu Ibrahim,” as its leader, that it is still capable of surprising and astonishing.
The surprise here is not related to Sinwar himself, his leadership abilities, or the degree to which he deserves the highest position in the movement. The question of merit was settled in “Sword of Jerusalem,” “October 7,” and “Al-Aqsa Flood,” as well as the milestones that preceded and followed them in Gaza and Palestine. No man’s name is personally associated with all of these milestones like Sinwar, and no one, whether enemy or friend, argues that the man possesses high levels of intelligence, toughness, and knowledge of the occupier’s corridors. No person like him has succeeded in combining the highest levels of toughness, flexibility, and realism together.
But the surprise was in choosing a man surrounded by circumstances and burdens that mountains would bear to occupy this position, especially after the war of extermination on Gaza entered its eleventh month. At a time when the eyes of observers were directed towards figures capable of movement, communication and exercising leadership, above ground and in its wide spaces, and not in the tunnels of Gaza and among its rubble and ruins. I personally did not hear from anyone, even those who claim to know Hamas from the inside, a preference for choosing “The living martyr” Successor to the late martyr.
It is a decision laden with meanings and implications, whether in terms of the movement-organizational structure of the most popular and influential movement among the Palestinian people, or in terms of indicating the movement’s political and alliance options at the current intense moment, described as unprecedented in the history of the Palestinian people, before the Nakba, and especially after it.
From a movement-organizational perspective, the decision to appoint Sinwar as Haniyeh’s successor, in a record time of no more than a few days, and in the context of a fierce war, showed that this movement enjoys agility and vitality, dictated by an experience in “institutionalization” and “consultation.”
Hamas's consensus on its decision dispelled the various chapters of black propaganda promoted by the channels. Hebrew and Arabic media “Unfortunately,” about the fierce disagreements between the conflicting inside and outside, the warring hawks and doves, who will never agree on anything other than a “settlement candidate.” Hamas's quick response to fill the void of its late leader has dispelled all these speculations and rumors, both innocent and evil, and has proven that it is a movement that, like steel, can also be watered by fire.
Politically, it has become certain that the Hamas leadership, with its rare unanimity behind its new leadership, was merely re-voting “confidence” on the October 7 decision, not because it had not given it its confidence before, but in view of all the developments and enormous sacrifices that followed it, and that by electing Sinwar it is confirming once again the correctness of the choice of resistance and armed struggle. After many discordant voices came out to us, doubting and accusing, and even betting that a feeling of regret had swept through some of Hamas’s leadership circles..
Politically, we are also entitled to assume that the decision on Sinwar was the culmination of a review of the negotiating track that has been going on for seven months or a little more, as Netanyahu – and the extreme right in Israel – succeeded in turning it into a track devoid of any content, and a process of distraction and obscuring the crimes he is committing in Gaza, without forgetting the West Bank and Jerusalem, and that the time has come to teach the man who raised the slogan: What cannot be taken by force and pressure, is taken by more of them, a slap in the face.
It is as if the Hamas leadership is saying to Netanyahu: You killed the negotiator from among us, so we brought you the fighter from among us. But with the leader of our fighters, Although everyone knows full well that the negotiations were not taking place in isolation from Sinwar, and the fighting was not taking place behind Haniyeh’s back, Netanyahu today finds himself facing “the most dangerous man for Israel,” as the Hebrew press described him, the same man who shook the throne of the “crowned King of Israel” and “Mr. Security,” overthrowing his personal and historical legacy.
Hamas will not withdraw from the negotiation process for a deal that meets the minimum aspirations of the Palestinian people and the consensus of its national resistance factions. This is a free gift that the movement will not offer to the Goebbels-Zionist propaganda machine, supported by the West and the Arabs, “except for those whom God has mercy on.” Hamas will continue to sit at the negotiating table, and with mediators, but not according to Netanyahu's schedules and timings. Negotiations are possible and necessary, provided that they bring the people of Gaza closer to a moment of relief and relief. This is one of the implications of the decision and choice.
As for the level of alliances and positioning on the maps of powers and their distribution in the region, Sinwar at the head of Hamas’ leadership means more closeness and rapprochement with the parties of the axis of resistance and the support fronts in the region, especially at an exceptional moment, when the role of these fronts is growing in relieving pressure on Gaza, and mobilizing diplomacy and mobilizing it for the sake of calm, a ceasefire, and lifting the siege.
Had the region not been pushed to the brink of the abyss, with the growth of serious and serious threats, with inevitable and unquestionable responses to the crimes of the occupation and its violations of Tehran, the southern suburb and Hodeidah, international and Arab diplomacy would not have been mobilized and mobilized to push the parties back a step or two, to prevent slipping from the brink of the abyss to its bottom.
Hamas enjoys support and embrace from Qatar and Turkey, without a doubt.Politically and diplomatically, Qatari mediation is the most “reliable” from the perspective of Hamas and its leaders. Doha in particular, played its major role in support and assistance, by hosting Haniyeh’s body and the grand funeral ceremonies for the great departed.But the resistance, at this very moment, needs support and backing from other parties, led by the components of the resistance axis, especially after the state of exhaustion that has befallen Gaza and its people, and the decline in the intensity and pace of the military battles that the resistance is waging in the Strip.
Perhaps the warm and enthusiastic reception that Sinwar received when he was chosen to lead Hamas, first by the Palestinian resistance factions, and second by the parties of this axis, is evidence of the aims and implications that the choice entailed.
The new leader of the movement, known for his toughness and stubbornness in the face of the occupier, showed remarkable openness to the various factions of the national resistance movement, all the way to the “Joint Operations Room.” The man who is respected among the parties of the resistance axis, succeeded in extracting the widest wave of welcoming and optimistic reactions from these parties.
In conclusion, it is logical to conclude that the movement will be, in the coming days and hours, facing a series of transitional measures and decisions, through which it will rebuild and complete the institutions of its leadership pyramid, and fill the gaps created by the hand of assassination. And crime The sinful Israeli.
It is logical to conclude that whoever takes the place of the second man in the movement will have to play unprecedented roles, given the circumstances surrounding the leadership of the first man. It is logical to conclude that Hamas will remain on a path of adapting to the outcomes of the flood, its repercussions, and the great sacrifices that the movement has paid, as part of the great sacrifices that the Palestinian people have paid with the blood of their women, children, and elderly, in the war to restore freedom, dignity, independence, and self-determination.
The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect the editorial position of Al Jazeera Network.