Hamas completes Gaza voting for general political bureau head, winner to be announced

Hamas's branches in the West Bank and abroad are expected to complete their voting processes and announce a winner next week. The competition is between two candidates, Khalil al-Hayya and Khaled Mashaal, who have ties to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Turkey and Arab nations respectively. The position of head of Hamas's general political bureau has been vacant since the previous head was killed in October 2024. The election will be limited to selecting a new head of the general political bureau.