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Who Remains in Hamas’ Political Bureau after Numerous Killings?

From right to left: Rouhi Mushtaha, Saleh al-Arouri, Ismail Haniyeh, Khaled Meshaal, and Khalil al-Hayya (Hamas-affiliated media)
From right to left: Rouhi Mushtaha, Saleh al-Arouri, Ismail Haniyeh, Khaled Meshaal, and Khalil al-Hayya (Hamas-affiliated media)
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Who Remains in Hamas’ Political Bureau after Numerous Killings?

From right to left: Rouhi Mushtaha, Saleh al-Arouri, Ismail Haniyeh, Khaled Meshaal, and Khalil al-Hayya (Hamas-affiliated media)
From right to left: Rouhi Mushtaha, Saleh al-Arouri, Ismail Haniyeh, Khaled Meshaal, and Khalil al-Hayya (Hamas-affiliated media)

Israel has intensified assassinations targeting senior members of Hamas' political bureau in Gaza, posing a major challenge for the group to fill organizational gaps amid ongoing security pressures and relentless Israeli pursuit.

This week, Israel killed two prominent Hamas political leaders in Gaza—Salah al-Bardawil and Ismail Barhoum—bringing the total number of slain bureau members to five since the Israeli military resumed its bombardment of the enclave last Tuesday.

Before Bardawil and Barhoum were killed within 24 hours in an airstrike on Khan Younis in southern Gaza, three other political bureau members—Mohammed al-Jamassi, Issam al-Da’alis, and Yasser Harb—were assassinated in separate attacks carried out simultaneously when Israel resumed its offensive on March 18.
Bardawil was part of Hamas' National Relations Office, while Barhoum oversaw financial affairs. Jamassi served in the legal department and held a general membership position. Da’alis, a Gaza-based member, initially led the economic department before managing governmental affairs. Harb was part of the Gaza office, responsible for organizational administration in the northern Gaza Strip.
High-Profile Assassinations
At the start of Israel’s military campaign following the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack, Israeli forces struggled to locate senior Hamas leaders. However, after several months, Israel launched a series of targeted assassinations, some occurring in rapid succession.
Among the most prominent figures killed was Hamas’ political chief Ismail Haniyeh, who was assassinated in Tehran in July 2024. His deputy, Saleh al-Arouri, was killed in Beirut in January of the same year.
Yahya Sinwar, who succeeded Haniyeh as Hamas’ overall leader after serving as the group’s political chief in Gaza, was killed during clashes with Israeli forces in Rafah’s Tel al-Sultan neighborhood on October 16, 2024. Israeli forces only identified him after his death.
Before the recent wave of killings, Israel had already targeted several high-ranking Hamas figures. Zakaria Abu Maamar and Jawad Abu Shamala were killed on October 10, 2023—just three days after Hamas' attack on Israeli towns near Gaza. Both died in an Israeli airstrike on a building in Khan Younis, southern Gaza.
Abu Maamar headed the National Relations Office within Hamas’ political bureau in Gaza and was also a member of the group's general bureau. Abu Shamala, a political bureau member in Gaza, handled security affairs.
On October 19, Israel assassinated Jamila Al-Shanti, a member of both the political bureau in Gaza and the general bureau, in an airstrike north of Gaza City. On the same day, Osama al-Muzaini, a Gaza-based political bureau member and head of the group’s Shura Council in the enclave, was killed when an Israeli strike hit an apartment in the Tel al-Hawa neighborhood.
In March 2024, Israel killed Marwan Issa, a senior Hamas political bureau member, in an airstrike targeting a tunnel in Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza.
Issa, who reportedly had cancer, was a key link between Hamas’ political and military wings, serving as deputy commander of the group’s armed branch, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades.
In August 2024, Israel assassinated Rouhi Mushtaha and Samih al-Sarraj, both members of Hamas' political bureau in Gaza, in an airstrike on a tunnel in the industrial zone south of Gaza City.
Hamas Political Bureau Structure
Hamas traditionally elects members to a general political bureau and separate regional bureaus for Gaza, the West Bank, and abroad. Some members serve in both their regional bureau and the general bureau, depending on the votes they receive.
In previous years, the general political bureau comprised 17 members, but this number increased to 24 during the last two election cycles.
Each region maintains at least 10 representatives, though the number can vary based on field conditions, particularly in the West Bank.
Following the recent assassinations, the remaining general political bureau members from Gaza include Khalil al-Hayya, Nizar Awadallah, Mahmoud al-Zahar, Ghazi Hamad, Fathi Hammad, and Suhail al-Hindi.
Gaza’s regional bureau still includes Ibrahim Sabra and Kamal Abu Aoun.
Among the remaining senior members of the Gaza-based political bureau, Hayya, Awadallah, Hamad, Hammad, and al-Hindi have been living outside Gaza since before the start of the Israeli war.
Other prominent figures in the general political bureau include Khaled Meshaal, Musa Abu Marzouk, Mohammad Nazzal, Izzat al-Rishq, Zaher Jabarin, Mahmoud Mardawi, and other unnamed individuals whose identities Hamas keeps confidential for security reasons.
The political bureau is the highest executive body within Hamas, responsible for making final decisions within the movement. Critical decisions are made by consensus between the political bureau and the Shura Council, a body composed of 50 members.

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Arab World

US Embassy in Beirut Warns of Possible Iran Threat to Universities in Lebanon

People walk past the main gate to the campus of the American University of Beirut (AUB) in the center of Beirut on January 13, 2022. (AFP)
People walk past the main gate to the campus of the American University of Beirut (AUB) in the center of Beirut on January 13, 2022. (AFP)
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US Embassy in Beirut Warns of Possible Iran Threat to Universities in Lebanon

People walk past the main gate to the campus of the American University of Beirut (AUB) in the center of Beirut on January 13, 2022. (AFP)
People walk past the main gate to the campus of the American University of Beirut (AUB) in the center of Beirut on January 13, 2022. (AFP)

The US embassy in Beirut said on ‌Friday ‌that Iran ‌and ⁠its aligned armed ⁠groups "may intend to target ⁠universities ‌in Lebanon".

In ‌a security ‌alert, ‌the embassy also ‌urged US citizens to depart ⁠Lebanon "while ⁠commercial flight options remain available".

Lebanon was dragged into the conflict in the Middle East when Iran-backed Hezbollah shot rockets at Israel in retaliation to the killing of Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei at the beginning of the war.

Over the past 24 hours, Israeli strikes killed 23 people and wounded 98, the Lebanese health ministry said Friday.

The ministry said that the overall death toll includes 125 children and 91 women, since Israel launched intense airstrikes across Lebanon after the Hezbollah fired rockets toward northern Israel in solidarity with Iran on March 2. The strikes have also wounded 4,138 others.

Among those killed are 53 health workers, while Israeli strikes have targeted 83 emergency medical service facilities, the health ministry said.

Arab World

UN Force Says 3 Peacekeepers Wounded in Blast Inside South Lebanon Position

UNIFIL vehicles drive on a main road in Qlayaa, amid escalating hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, as the US-Israel conflict with Iran continues, in Qlayaa, southern Lebanon, March 27, 2026. (Reuters)
UNIFIL vehicles drive on a main road in Qlayaa, amid escalating hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, as the US-Israel conflict with Iran continues, in Qlayaa, southern Lebanon, March 27, 2026. (Reuters)
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UN Force Says 3 Peacekeepers Wounded in Blast Inside South Lebanon Position

UNIFIL vehicles drive on a main road in Qlayaa, amid escalating hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, as the US-Israel conflict with Iran continues, in Qlayaa, southern Lebanon, March 27, 2026. (Reuters)
UNIFIL vehicles drive on a main road in Qlayaa, amid escalating hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, as the US-Israel conflict with Iran continues, in Qlayaa, southern Lebanon, March 27, 2026. (Reuters)

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon said a blast hit one of its positions and wounded three peacekeepers on Friday, the third such incident in a week.

"This afternoon, an explosion inside a UN position... injured three peacekeepers, two seriously. They are all currently being evacuated to hospital. We do not yet know the origin of the explosion," UNIFIL spokesperson Kandice Ardiel said in a statement.

"UNIFIL reminds all actors of their obligations to ensure the safety and security of peacekeepers, including by avoiding combat activities nearby that could put them in danger," she added.

The UN force is deployed in south Lebanon near the Israeli border, where Israel and Hezbollah have been at war for a month and where Israeli troops are pressing a ground invasion.

Lebanon was drawn into the Middle East war on March 2 when the Tehran-backed Hezbollah launched rockets at Israel to avenge the US-Israeli attack that killed Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei.

Israel has responded with massive strikes across Lebanon, as well as the ground operation.

UNIFIL had said that a peacekeeper was killed on Sunday evening when a projectile of unknown origin "exploded in a UNIFIL position near Adchit al-Qusayr".

The following day, UNIFIL said an "explosion of unknown origin" destroyed a peacekeeping vehicle, killing two more Indonesian troops.

It said investigations had been launched into both incidents.

A UN security source told AFP this week that Israeli fire was the source of Sunday's attack, while a mine may have caused the following day's deadly blast.

Israel's military denied responsibility for Monday's incident.

"A comprehensive operational examination indicates that no explosive device was placed in the area by army troops, and that no troops were present in the area at all," the statement said.

According to the UN, 97 force members have been killed in violence since UNIFIL was first established to monitor the withdrawal of Israeli forces after they invaded Lebanon in 1978.

The mandate of the force, which for decades has acted as a buffer between Israel and Lebanon, finishes at the end of this year.

Arab World

RSF in Sudan Kill at Least 10 People in Hospital Drone Attack, Medical Group Says

Fighters of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) drive an armored vehicle in Khartoum in 2023. (AFP)
Fighters of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) drive an armored vehicle in Khartoum in 2023. (AFP)
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RSF in Sudan Kill at Least 10 People in Hospital Drone Attack, Medical Group Says

Fighters of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) drive an armored vehicle in Khartoum in 2023. (AFP)
Fighters of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) drive an armored vehicle in Khartoum in 2023. (AFP)

Sudan ’s paramilitary forces killed at least 10 people on Thursday in a drone attack that hit a hospital in the south-central part of the country, said a medical group.

Doctors Without Borders, also known as MSF, said the Sudanese paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, RSF, launched two drone strikes on al-Jabalain Hospital in the White Nile province, hitting an operating theater and a maternity ward.

The strikes, the latest in an intensifying drone warfare between the army and the RSF, killed 10 people, including seven medical staffers, and injured at least 19 people. Those injured were transferred to a hospital in Kosti, which is around 50 miles (80 kilometers) away, said MSF.

Salah Moussa, a senior staffer in the nursing department at al-Jabalain Hospital, was injured in his leg in one of the two strikes. He told The Associated Press by phone on Friday that those killed include the hospital’s general manager, the administrative manager, several policemen and a citizen.

Moussa said he was in his house near the hospital when he heard the sound of explosions at around 11 a.m. on Thursday.

“I rushed to the hospital when I heard the explosion and while we were helping evacuate three injured staff members, another drone strike was launched and I got hit and lost consciousness,” he said. “The hospital lost all its medical and administrative leadership in this attack.”

The strikes are the latest in a series of attacks on the health care system in Sudan that continues to be hit hard during the ongoing war between the army and the RSF that broke out in April 2023. The World Health Organization said in March that over 200 attacks have targeted health care since the war began. Most recently, 70 people were killed, including at least 13 children, in a strike on a hospital in Sudan’s western Darfur region last month.

The nearly three-year conflict in Sudan killed more than 40,000 people, according to UN figures, but aid groups say the true number could be much higher.

“The attack is even more appalling as it occurred during a children’s immunization campaign,” the MSF said of the strike on the al-Jabalain hospital.

Meanwhile, Emergency Lawyers, a local rights group, said Thursday that the attacks also targeted a medical supply depot in Rabak, the capital city of the White Nile province.

The Emergency Lawyers said the “recurring pattern” of drone attacks by the warring parties since March in the provinces of South Kordofan, Blue Nile, East, Central and South Darfur displaced more people.

On Friday, Khalid Aleisir, the minister of culture, information, antiquities and Tourism condemned the attack and called for designating the RSF a terrorist organization and prosecuting its members.

“We also hold regional backers directly responsible for perpetuating this violent campaign through military and logistical support, including advanced weaponry and unmanned aerial systems, which have escalated violence and targeted civilians,” he wrote on X.

Sudan Doctors Network, a local group that monitors war violence, called the attack a “deliberate assault on health facilities and unarmed civilians” that further worsens an already deteriorating health sector in the country.

“MSF is outraged by these repeated attacks on health care, which have escalated dangerously in recent weeks,” said Esperanza Santos, MSF head of emergencies for Sudan in the group’s statement on Thursday. “Health facilities, medical staff, and patients must always be protected. We call on RSF and SAF to immediately stop this spiral of violence against medical facilities.”

A surge in drone strikes in the Sudanese region of Kordofan has taken a growing toll on civilians and hampered aid operations, analysts and humanitarian workers previously said.