Will his successor embrace more violence or compromise?
After the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza in 2021 Yahya Sinwar appeared sitting in an armchair in the open air, surrounded by rubble and smiling. It became a defining image of defiance for many Hamas supporters. This time the story ended differently. Mr Sinwar died in the ruins of Gaza, like tens of thousands of victims of the war he unleashed a year ago. In a firefight with an Israeli patrol in southern Gaza, the leader of Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist group, was killed on October 16th. His death leaves Hamas shattered and divided.
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This article appeared in the Middle East & Africa section of the print edition under the headline “Hamas’s leader is dead”
Middle East & AfricaOctober 26th 2024
From the October 26th 2024 edition
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Israel’s limited missile strike on Iran may be the start of a wider assault
Whatever Iran’s response to the attack, it carries risks for the regime
Israel’s leaders are watching America’s election closely
Who wins will shape Israel’s approach to its three wars
Do Israel’s assassinations work?
Why the conventional wisdom about decapitating Hamas and Hizbullah might be wrong
How African churches are keeping the faith alive abroad
A revamped version of the prosperity gospel appeals to young immigrants
Mozambique’s ruling party wins a dodgy election
Two opposition figures were murdered days before the result was announced
Gold is booming. So is the dirty business of digging it up
It is mined in Africa, traded in Dubai and lucrative for warlords and jihadists