With Hamas confirming the death of its chief Yahya Sinwar, on Friday, all eyes are on the Palestinian militant group's next move.
Prime among them will be the announcement of its new chief. Sinwar, the alleged mastermind of the October 7 attack, was killed in Gaza by the Israel Defence Forces.
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Sinwar replaced Hamas's previous leader, Ismail Haniyeh. Incidentally, Israel was held responsible for Haniyeh's killing in a blast in Iran in July this year, which led to the escalation of tensions between the two nations.
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It remains to be seen if the killing of Sinwar, who was more of a defiant figure, will give way to a more councillatory approach by the group. Senior Hamas official Khalil al-Hayya, however, said that the former leader's death will only strengthen the group, and that the hostages will not be freed till the Israeli "aggression" in Gaza ends.
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According to AP, Hamas's matter are managed by a collective leadership comprising the head of the group's Shura Council and officials in charge of the Gaza, West Bank and areas abroad. However, Sinwar controlled all matters related to Israeli hostages in Gaza.
Who are Yahya Sinwar's likely successors?
With Sinwar dead, his deputy Khalil al-Hayya, who is based in Qatar and is in charge of Gaza, is expected to continue managing the executive affairs.
One of the other two regional leaders—Zaher Jibril, who is entrusted with the West Bank, and Khaled Meshaal, in charge of regions abroad—may be considered, too, as the next Hamas chief. Meshaal and al-Hayya are both members of Hamas's political leadership based in Qatar.
Al-Hayya, who is not considered to be a hardliner like Sinwar, led Hamas's ceasfire negotiations in 2014 and during the current conflict, and is a group veteran. He was close to Haniyeh, and has, reportedly, good relations with Iran.
Al-Hayya, reportedly told AP in an interview that Hamas was open to truce with Israel, and had added that “if an independent Palestinian state were created along 1967 borders”, Hamas would disband its military wing and “become a purely political party”. His selection would, therefore, raise hopes of a long-awaited ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
Meshaal, on the other hand, served as Hamas's political leader from 1996 to 2017. The relatively moderate leader is believed to be close to Turkey and Qatar, but has troubled relations with Iran, Syria and Hezbollah.
Another couple of names doing the rounds are that of Sinwar's brother Mohammed, and Moussa Abu Marzouk—Hamas's founding member and the first head of its political bureau. Mohammed Sinwar is a key military figure in Gaza as the head of the field battle.
There is also a possibility that the group will select a leader but not announce it publicly for security reasons.