Beirut, 7 August 2024 (dpa/MIA) - Yehya al-Sinwar, the head of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, has been chosen to replace the late Ismail Haniyeh as the top leader of the Palestinian militant group.

His promotion within Iran-backed Hamas was announced on Tuesday on Telegram, and comes as the Middle East braces for a possible new wave of attacks by Tehran and its allies against Israel.

Al-Sinwar is accused of being a mastermind of the October 7 massacres in southern Israel that killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took around 250 people hostage.

But despite Israel's nearly 10-month air and ground offensive in Gaza, al-Sinwar has seemingly eluded the Israeli forces hunting him down. Israel believes he is cornered in the tunnels running below the Palestinian territory.

Qatar-based Haniyeh was killed nearly a week ago in a targeted attack blamed on Israel as he visited Tehran for the inauguration of Iran's new president.

That came on the heels of Israel killing Fuad Shukr, a top military commander with Iran-allied Hezbollah was killed in Beirut.

Fears of a broader regional war have been mounting as Iran and its proxy forces in the Middle East - which include Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen - vow revenge for the killings.

From "Butcher of Khan Younis" to leader

Al-Sinwar was born in 1962 in the Khan Younis refugee camp in the south of the Gaza Strip. His family came from the area around the coastal town of Ashkelon, now part of Israel.

When Hamas was formed during the first Palestinian uprising, or Intifada, against the Israeli occupation at the end of the 1980s, al-Sinwar played a hand in setting up the military arm of Hamas, the Qassam Brigades.

In the early years of the Islamist movement, al-Sinwar was responsible for the fight against suspected collaborators with Israel within its own ranks. He was so brutal in his actions that he became known as the "Butcher of Khan Younis."

Al-Sinwar spent more than two decades in Israeli custody, during which time he learnt Hebrew fluently. He was released from an Israeli prison in 2011 as part of a swap for Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, who had been held hostage by militants for five years.

Al-Sinwar returned to Gaza and became Hamas' leader there in 2017.

One of Israel's central aims since October 7 has been to capture or kill al-Sinwar. His deputy, Mohammed Deif, was killed in a strike last month, according to Israel.

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz wrote on X that al-Sinwar is an "arch-terrorist" and that his elevation "is yet another compelling reason to swiftly eliminate him and wipe this vile organization off the face of the earth."

The Hamas-run Health Ministry says more than 39,600 people have died in Gaza since the start of the current war between Israel and Hamas.

Blinken says ceasefire in Gaza depends on al-Sinwar

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that a ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip ultimately depends on al-Sinwar.

"It is truly up to him to determine whether to move forward with a ceasefire," Blinken said.

Blinken said that al-Sinwar has been the "primary decider" on a ceasefire deal before his appointment as successor to the late Hamas leader Haniyeh.

"This only underscores the fact that it is really on him to decide whether to move forward with a ceasefire."

Blinken said the negotiations on a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of the hostages had reached a "decisive moment."

"We believe strongly that they should come across the finish line very, very soon," he said.

Iran's response to Israel looms

Tehran and Hezbollah have threatened massive retaliation for the killings of Haniyeh and Shukr, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned of severe consequences should they do so.

The head of the pro-Iranian Hezbollah movement Hassan Nasrallah said Tuesday that "our response is coming and it will be strong and effective."

Nasrallah told thousands of his followers via video that, regardless of the consequences, his movement cannot let the assassinations go unpunished.

He said a retaliatory strike could occur together with other groups in the so-called "Axis of Resistance," including those in Iraq and Yemen. Iran's leadership has also vowed to exact vengeance.

Hezbollah has said it is acting in solidarity with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, and that if the fighting there stops, the movement will lay down its weapons in southern Lebanon.

Israeli forces and Hezbollah militants have traded border fire on a near daily basis since the October 7 attacks.

In the latest incident, Israeli airstrikes on Tuesday targeted a southern Lebanese village, killing five people, the Lebanese Health Ministry said in a statement.

Hezbollah said its fighters targeted a building used by Israeli soldiers in northern Israel in response. Israel said several civilians were injured to the south of the city of Nahariya by Hezbollah fire.

Northern Israel residents advised to stay close to bomb shelters

Local authorities in northern Israel are calling on the residents of several communities to stay close to bomb shelters due to the heightened tensions in the region.

The request was made to those living in Nahariya, around 10 kilometres from the border with Lebanon, as well as communities near the Golan Heights, Israeli media reported.

The appeal was seen as a precautionary measure, as the Israeli military has yet to deliver its own such request.

Diplomatic push to ease tensions

US President Joe Biden spoke separately on the phone with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani about "efforts to de-escalate regional tensions," a White House statement said on Tuesday.

Elsewhere, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said there was still time to avert a major military escalation.

"I urgently appeal to everyone in the region to abandon the path of ever-increasing escalation. De-escalation is the order of the day," she wrote on X.

"Another war will only bring new suffering on all sides. There is still a chance to turn things around. Escalation is not automatic," Baerbock added.

Photo: EPA