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A top militia commander has been named the new leader of the Islamist militant organisation, Hamas, in the impoverished Palestinian coastal enclave.
Yehiya Sinwar, a founder of Hamas’s military wing, has been branded a committed terrorist by Israel. He is also close to Iran, unlike more pragmatic Hamas politicians who want better relations with moderate Sunni Arab states, according to Israeli analysts.
According to The Washington Post, Israel has arrested Sinwar three times (in 1982, 1985 and 1988) when he was sentenced to multiple life terms for his role as the mastermind in the abduction and killing of two Israeli soldiers. He served 22 years.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu freed Sinwar in 2011 as part of a massive prisoner swap to secure the release of an Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, who had been captured five years earlier by Hamas in an ambush along the Gaza periphery.
Kobi Michael, an analyst and former Israeli government official, was quoted by The Washington Post as saying that he is troubled by Sinwar’s ascension. “He represents the most radical and extreme line of Hamas,” Michael said.
He said the timing of Sinwar’s election, which came just two days before Netanyahu meets with US President Donald Trump in the White House.
The post Hamas names new leader appeared first on New Europe.