Since the deaths of Ismail Haniyeh and Yahya Sinwar last year, Khalil Al-Hayya, a top Hamas official targeted by Israel in Qatar on Tuesday, has grown in importance among the Palestinian militant organization’s leadership.
Top Hamas figures, including Hayya, the group’s exiled Gaza chief and main negotiator, were targeted in the strike, Israeli officials told Reuters. The group’s delegation in Doha for ceasefire talks escaped the strike, according to two Hamas sources who spoke to Reuters.
Since Haniyeh was assassinated by Israel in Iran in July 2024, Hayya has been largely regarded as the group’s most important representative outside, playing a vital role in peace negotiations during the war that broke out two years ago.
