Hamas leader Sinwar reportedly changes location following IDF strike on Nasrallah

Gaza leadership allegedly considering demand safe exit as part of hostage negotiations

Read this article in:

Yahya Sinwar, the top leader of the Hamas terrorist organization, has changed his location in the Gaza Strip following the killing of Hezbollah Sec.-Gen. Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut, according to Saudi Arabia's state-owned Al Arabiya news outlet. Hamas has also reportedly changed Sinwar's security protocols in recent days.

Sources told the Saudi TV channel that Hamas leaders want any future ceasefire deal to guarantee their safety. As a precaution, Hamas suspended any meetings with leaders in Lebanon for the foreseeable future.

Hamas has also limited its correspondence with Hamas leadership abroad and outside groups, over fears of compromising Sinwar and the remaining Gaza leadership, according to reports.

French news site Le Parisien, citing a Lebanese security source familiar with the details of the strike, said that Nasrallah was compromised by “an Iranian mole” who communicated the leader’s arrival at an underground bunker to the Israelis, which led to the airstrike that killed Nasrallah.

Israel's KAN public broadcaster reported that Hamas has limited internal communications to written correspondence to prevent Israeli intelligence from intercepting conversations or discovering the location of its leaders.

The Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terrorist organization also reportedly suspended its meetings in Lebanon following the strike on Nasrallah and the deaths of other Hezbollah and Iranian leaders.

Hamas leadership is reportedly concerned that its communications with outside groups could similarly be compromised.

Recent reports in Israeli media stated that Hamas leadership may be planning to ask for a clause guaranteeing safe transit from Gaza for Sinwar and other leaders as part of a hostage release deal.

Hostage negotiations have seemingly become a lower priority for the Israeli government as it shifts its focus to Hezbollah on the north border.

Following the official confirmation of Nasrallah’s death, Hamas issued a statement: “The Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) mourns with our Palestinian people, our Arab and Islamic nation, and the free people of the world the martyrdom of His Eminence Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Secretary-General of Hezbollah, who was martyred along with a group of his brothers, the leaders, in the Battle of the Flood of Al-Aqsa and on the road to Jerusalem, supporting our Palestinian people and their valiant resistance in confronting the Zionist enemy.”

Hashem Safi al-Din, Nasrallah's cousin, is believed to be Nasrallah's successor. If so, it indicates that Safi al-Din either survived the attack or, more likely, was not in the bunker at the time of the strike. He was widely seen as the natural choice to succeed the Hezbollah secretary-general and is believed to already be acting as the head of Hezbollah until the Shura Council can vote for a successor.

Safi al-Din's appointment is seen as a double-sided move; it shows a continuity of the leadership while giving the position to someone known for his harsh stance toward Israel and a commitment to the fight against the Jewish state.