News of the appointment, which came as Israel braces for a response to the killing of Haniyeh in the Iranian capital, was greeted with a salvo of rockets from Gaza from the bands of militants still fighting Israeli troops in the besieged enclave.
Israel has not claimed responsibility for the assassination but it has said it killed other senior leaders, including Hamas deputy leader Saleh al-Arouri, who was killed in Beirut, and Mohammed Deif, the movement’s military commander.
In a sign that the movement had united around the choice of Sinwar, Khaled Meshaal, a former leader who had been seen as a potential successor to Haniyeh, was said by senior sources in the movement to have backed Sinwar “in loyalty to Gaza and its people, who are waging the battle of the Flood of al-Aqsa”.
Israel’s chief military spokesman blamed Sinwar for the October 7 attack and said Israel would continue to pursue him. Source: EPA / MOHAMMED SABER/EPA
For Israel, the appointment confirms Hamas as a foe dedicated to its destruction and is likely to reinforce Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s insistence that Israel must pursue its campaign in Gaza to the end.
The October 7 attack was a significant escalation in the long-standing conflict between Israel and Hamas.