The Hamas leaders at the top of Israel’s hitlist
Israeli officials claim that Gaza City is now surrounded and ground forces are closing in on Hamas’s senior leaders, who are said to be hiding in a network of tunnels below the city.
Killing the men responsible for the deadly raids of 7 October has been a central goal within Israel’s wider mission to destroy the militant group.
Israel has announced a series of successful assassinations during the month-long assault, including Mahsan Abu-Zina on Wednesday, said to be in charge of Hamas’ rocket manufacturing operation.
But the most prized targets at the top of the organisation are still on the loose.
Yahya Sinwar
Hamas’s leader in Gaza has been described as a “dead man walking” by Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Israel Defence Force (IDF) spokesperson Richard Hecht called him the “face of evil” and the “mastermind” of the 7 October attacks.
Sinwar, 61, was previously seen as someone that Israel could do business with by much of the security establishment, having overseen a period of relative calm and a series of economic agreements with the Israeli government.
The militant leader was raised in poverty in Khan Younis refugee camp in southern Gaza. In the 1980s, he served as an advisor to Hamas’s first leader, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, and established the group’s internal security force, charged with rooting out collaborators.
Sinwar performed the role with an iron fist and allegedly ordered the killing of several Palestinians suspected of collaboration with Israel.
In 2008, he was imprisoned in Israel for the killing of two Israeli soldiers. He served 22 years, in which time he impressed his guards by mastering fluent Hebrew, before being released in a prisoner swap in 2011. He became head of Hamas in Gaza in 2017.
Mohammed Deif
The leader of Hamas’s military wing is among the most mysterious senior Hamas figures, and the most wanted by Israel.
Mr Deif – known as “the guest”, a translation of his name in Arabic – has rarely been seen in public. There are just a handful of photographs that show his face.
The commander is credited with forming the al-Qassam brigades shortly after Hamas was established in 1987.
Israeli authorities hold him responsible for a series of bombings inside Israel that killed dozens of people during the 1990s.
Mr Deif has survived several assassination attempts, one of which reportedly killed his brother in 2014. He was said to have lost an eye in another.
Ismail Haniyeh
The overall leader of Hamas is living a life of luxury in Qatar as Gaza comes under heavy bombardment.
Israel has suggested it intends to pursue the group’s leadership abroad.
One of Haniyeh’s homes in Gaza was reportedly bombed last week with several family members killed.
The Hamas chief, who holds a degree in Arabic literature, was an influential figure in the early days of the group during the first intifada (uprising) in the late 1980s, before serving spells in Israeli jails.
After a period in exile, Mr Haniyeh returned to Gaza and was nominated as Hamas’s candidate for prime minister in the Palestinian elections of 2006.
He won the vote and briefly led a unity government, before a bloody internal conflict that left Hamas in charge of Gaza – under Israeli blockade – and the Palestinian political group Fatah ruling the West Bank.
Mr Haniyeh remained the leader of Hamas in Gaza until he was replaced by Yahya Sinwar in 2017. He left the enclave in 2019.
Marwan Issa
Deif’s deputy leader of the Qassam brigades is another longstanding target of Israel.
Issa grew up in the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza, where his family had fled from what is now the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon, after the state was founded in 1948.
The 58-year-old joined Hamas soon after it was established and has served time in both Israeli and Palestinian jails.
Issa was said to have played a key role in planning operations such as capturing Israeli prisoners and attacks on political rivals Fatah.
As with commander Deif, the militant leader is rarely seen in public and has been the subject of several assassination attempts.
Khaled Meshaal
One of the founding members of Hamas, Meshaal claims to have retired from the organisation but is still a target, according to Israeli officials.
Meshaal has spent most the past three decades abroad, living in Kuwait and Jordan and serving as Hamas’s top diplomat.
The West Bank-born militant became overall leader of Hamas in 2004 after the assassination of Sheikh Yassin and oversaw its surprise election victory. He remained in charge until he was replaced by Haniyeh in 2017.
In 1997, Meshaal survived an Israeli assassination attempt in Jordan by poisoning. Pressure from then US President Bill Clinton forced Israel to supply the antidote that saved his life.
Saleh al-Arouri
A member of Hamas since its foundation, Al-Arouri is now believed to be deputy leader of the political wing while living in exile in Lebanon.
Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid named him among the top Hamas targets after the 7 October attacks. His house in the West Bank was recently demolished by the Israeli military.
Al-Arouri has often served in a diplomatic capacity, leading negotiations with Israel on prisoner exchanges and meeting with foreign leaders. He is also credited with the foundation of Hamas’s military wing in the West Bank.
