This is not an election, it is merely proof of life. But Hamas is resolved to show Palestinians that it is still active, despite the heavy losses inflicted by the Israeli army during the war launched in retaliation for the massacres of October 7, 2023. Since December 2025, the organization has begun to appoint a new leader – a message addressed to its own disoriented ranks as well as to interlocutors in the Middle East and in Washington. The person chosen will face the daunting task of succeeding Yahya Sinwar, the mastermind of the October 7 terrorist attack, who was killed in an Israeli air strike on October 16, 2024, in Rafah.

Within an organization that claims to operate collegially, the successor will have no choice but to assume Sinwar’s controversial legacy, even within Hamas itself. Behind the scenes, the new leader must bridge the deep divisions within the Islamist movement and attempt to ensure its survival. For 15 months, a group of five senior officials in exile in Turkey and Qatar has led on an interim basis, following Sinwar’s wishes – he made sure to arrange his succession before his death. “Today, no one knows who is in charge. They need to show they still control their own destiny, even if that’s no longer true,” explained Palestinian journalist Mohammed Daraghmeh in Ramallah.

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