Special to WorldTribune.com

GAZA CITY — The Hamas regime has pressed Khaled Masha’al to resign
his leadership post.

Hamas sources said the regime in the Gaza Strip succeeded in a campaign
for Masha’al to resign as head of the movement’s political bureau. They said
the 56-year-old Masha’al had already told the political bureau in late
December that he would not run for a third term.

“After months of pressure, Masha’al said in a leadership forum that he would not run again,” a Hamas source said.

On Jan. 21, Hamas released a statement that he would not run for another term as head of the political bureau. Hamas said Masha’al, who plans to visit the Gaza Strip, was urged to serve another term by members of the Shura Council.

“Political bureau chief Khaled Masha’al has notified Hamas’ Shura
Council that he does not wish to be a candidate for the movement’s future leadership,” the statement said.

The sources said the opposition to Masha’al was led by Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh. Haniyeh is said to have lobbied his colleagues in the political bureau to insist that Masha’al, elected in 1996, honor Hamas’ two-term limit.

The Shura Council is said to contain numerous Masha’al loyalists who
demand that he continue for another four-year term. In late December,
all 59 members of the council told Masha’al in the Sudanese capital of
Khartoum that they would oppose any resignation.

“They unanimously called for Masha’al to run again as the only candidate
in June [2012],” a Palestinian source told the Saudi-owned A-Sharq Al Awsat
on Jan. 22.

Hamas plans to conduct elections by August but has been struggling
to obtain permission from the Palestinian Authority, which rules the West
Bank.

The sources said Masha’al’s deputy, Mussa Abu Marzouk, is expected to
replace Masha’al, but could be challenged by Haniyeh.

Haniyeh has begun traveling around the Middle East to raise his profile,
with plans to arrive in Iran by February. The sources said Haniyeh would be
accompanied by Masha’al, who won 80 percent in the last leadership elections
in 2008.

But the Hamas withdrawal from Damascus has angered the regime of Syrian
President Bashar Assad, which hosted the movement for more than 20 years. On
Jan. 21, Masha’al’s daughter and son-in-law were arrested in Syria on
charges of corruption, the Saudi-owned web site Elaph reported. Elaph said
the regime also arrested two aides of Masha’al in Damascus on charges that
they worked for Israel’s Mossad.

“The report is baseless and is an atempt to discredit the movement,”
Hamas said in response.

The sources said Haniyeh, former Foreign Minister Mahmoud Zahar and
military chief Ahmed Jabari lobbied for greater influence by the Gaza Strip
within Hamas. They said the Gaza leadership argued that no decision could be
taken that would endanger the only area under Hamas sovereignty, including
proposals for reconciliation with the rival Fatah movement.

“Haniyeh has decided to join the others, even though Jabari is more
aligned with Iran than the Arab world,” the source said. “They are united by
one thing — to get Masha’al out and acquire greater influence in Hamas.”

Zahar has long been a critic of Masha’al, particularly the latter’s
agreement for a unity government between Fatah and Hamas. In August 2011,
Masha’al ordered Zahar expelled from Hamas committees that dealt with Fatah
reconciliation as well as prisoner negotiations with Israel.

The sources said Zahar might also run for the leadership of the
political bureau. They said he has garnered the support of many in the Hamas
regime in the Gaza Strip, including Interior Minister Fathi Hamad. Another
potential candidate was identified as Osama Hamdan.

For his part, Haniyeh, who in 2010 began to play a role in setting
policy for Hamas’ military wing, wants to expand Hamas to include other
militias in the Gaza Strip. Earlier this month, Haniyeh and Zahar called for a
merger with the Iranian-sponsored Islamic Jihad, the most active militia in
the strip. Jihad has confirmed that merger talks with Hamas have begun.

“Religion, politics and political developments in our surrounding
require the closeness of Islamic movements,” Zahar said.

  Ahmed Jabari, Bashar Assad, Gaza Strip, Islamic Jihad, Ismail Haniyeh, Khaled Masha’al, Loyalists can’t convince Masha’al to seek another term as Hamas political leader, Mahmoud Zahar, Mussa Abu Marzouk, Shura Council