Khaled Mashal خالد مشعل | |
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Chairman of the Hamas Political Bureau | |
In office 1996 – 6 May 2017 | |
Deputy | Mousa Abu Marzook (1997–2013)[1] Ismail Haniyeh (2013–2017)[1] |
Preceded by | Mousa Abu Marzook |
Succeeded by | Ismail Haniyeh |
Personal details | |
Born | [2] Silwad, Jordanian West Bank[2] | 28 May 1956
Nationality | Palestinian |
Political party | Hamas |
Residence(s) | Silwad, West Bank (1956–1967)[3] Damascus, Syria (2001–2012) Doha, Qatar (since 2012) |
Alma mater | Kuwait University (BSc) |
Palestinian nationalism Factions and leaders | ||
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Map: Birthplaces or family origins Details below: p. parents from, b. born in, d. death. | ||
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Officeholders whose status is disputed are shown in italics |
Member state of the Arab League |
Palestine portal |
Khaled Mashal (Arabic: خالد مشعل, romanized: Khālid Mashʿal, Levantine Arabic: [ˈχæːled ˈmeʃʕæl]; born 28 May 1956) is a Palestinian politician who served as chairman of the Hamas Political Bureau from 1996 until May 2017, where he was succeeded by Ismail Haniyeh. He was regarded as one of the most prominent leaders of Hamas since the death of Ahmed Yassin, alongside Ismail Haniyeh.[4]
Israel's occupation of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip during the 1967 Six-Day War forced Mashal's family to flee and he has since then lived in other parts of the Arab world in exile. For that reason, he was considered part of Hamas' "external leadership".
After the founding of Hamas in the wake of the First Intifada against the Israeli occupation in 1987, Mashal became the leader of the Kuwaiti branch of the organization.[5] In 1992, he became a founding member of Hamas' politburo[6] and its chairman.[7] He became the recognized head of Hamas after Israel assassinated both Sheikh Ahmed Yassin and his successor Abdel Aziz al-Rantisi in the spring of 2004.[7][8] Under his leadership, Hamas secured a surprise majority of the seats in the Palestinian legislative election in 2006. Mashal stepped down as Hamas' politburo chairman at the end of his term limit in 2017.[9][10]