CAIRO — Hamas is expected to elect a new leader in January, according to two sources within the group, ending a leadership vacuum created after Israel killed Yahya Sinwar in 2024.
Khalil Al-Hayya and Khaled Meshaal are seen as the leading contenders to head the militant Islamist group at a critical juncture. Hamas has been severely weakened by two years of war following its October 7, 2023 attack on Israel and is under growing international pressure to disarm.
Both Al-Hayya and Meshaal are based in Qatar and are members of the five-man leadership council that has been running Hamas since Sinwar’s death. Sinwar, regarded as one of the main architects of the October 7 attack, succeeded Ismail Haniyeh, who was assassinated by Israel during a visit to Iran in 2024.
Sources said the election process has already begun. The new leader will be chosen through a secret ballot by Hamas’ 50-member Shoura Council, which includes representatives from the Gaza Strip, the Israeli-occupied West Bank, and Hamas members living in exile. A Hamas spokesperson declined to comment.
The group is also expected to elect a new deputy leader to replace Saleh Al-Arouri, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon in 2024.
Analysts of Hamas describe Meshaal as part of a more pragmatic wing with strong ties to Sunni Muslim countries, while Al-Hayya—Hamas’ chief negotiator—is seen as aligned with a faction that has strengthened relations with Iran.
Hamas now faces some of the most severe challenges since its founding in 1987. Although large-scale fighting in Gaza has eased following a US-brokered ceasefire in October, Israel continues to control nearly half of the territory, sporadic attacks persist, and humanitarian conditions for Gaza’s roughly two million residents remain dire.
