Gaza: what does new Hamas leader Sinwar stand for?
The radical Islamic Hamas organisation has appointed Yahya Sinwar as successor to its assassinated former leader Ismail Haniyeh. Sinwar (61) lives in hiding and is believed to be the mastermind of the 7 October massacre in which around 1,200 people were killed in southern Israel. Commentators debate the repercussions.
Diplomatic forces crippled
Peace is now an even more distant prospect, writes Der Standard:
“Little will change for Israel as far as the war in the Gaza Strip is concerned. ... With Sinwar as Hamas's leader it is easier to make the case that the fight against Hamas cannot be stopped - regardless of what this means for the civilian population. Sinwar's election has a crippling effect on all diplomatic forces - not only the Arab ones - that are working towards a post-war order for the Gaza Strip. Even for sharp critics of Israel, accepting the architect of 7 October as a political dialogue partner is basically impossible.”
Hamas continues to stand for terror
Sinwar is every bit a warmonger, the Neue Zürcher Zeitung stresses:
“By appointing Yahya Sinwar as its leader, Hamas is sending a clear signal to Israel: the armed struggle will continue at any cost, there will be no compromise. Sinwar stands for the strategy of blind terror more than any other Hamas leader. The head of Hamas in the Gaza Strip is regarded as the architect of the massacre on 7 October, which plunged the terrorist group into a devastating war.”
It's about Israel's right to exist
The challenges Israel faces will become even greater now that Sinwar is the new Hamas leader, Jyllands-Posten comments:
“Yahya Sinwar, is 61 years old and has been sentenced to life imprisonment four times [in Israel], including for murdering Palestinians who collaborated with Israel. He is the man who said that Hamas's debate should not be about whether to recognise Israel, but about 'when we will wipe out Israel'. This, along with the exposure of the nine UNRWA employees [that may have been involved in the attack of 7 October] shows what Israel is up against: people in a system who are not willing to negotiate or compromise, but have only one goal: to eradicate the state of Israel. This battle revolves around Israel's right to exist.”