A year after the Hamas assault on southern Israel that ignited a full-scale war, Khaled Meshaal, the Hamas leader-in-exile, declared that the Palestinian militant group would rise “like a phoenix” from the destruction, despite suffering heavy losses throughout the conflict with Israel. Meshaal emphasized that the group’s resilience and resolve remain undeterred, and Hamas continues to rebuild its military capacities.
Marking the anniversary of the October 2023 attack that left around 1,200 Israelis dead and 250 others taken hostage, Meshaal framed the ongoing war with Israel as part of a 76-year struggle that he said dates back to the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. Known among Palestinians as the “Nakba” or “catastrophe,” this event saw the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians and the founding of the State of Israel. Meshaal, 68, characterized the war as one of many cycles in the broader Palestinian struggle for self-determination.
“Palestinian history is made of cycles,” Meshaal remarked. “We go through phases where we lose martyrs (victims) and we lose part of our military capabilities, but then the Palestinian spirit rises again, like the phoenix, thanks to God.”
Though Hamas has sustained significant losses, Meshaal’s comments reaffirm the group’s stance that it remains a formidable force in the region. Despite the devastation in Gaza, he suggested that Hamas continues to recruit fighters and manufacture weapons, maintaining their ability to resist Israeli forces.
Meshaal’s leadership in Hamas has spanned almost three decades, including a stint as the group’s overall leader from 1996 to 2017. His influence was cemented after surviving a high-profile Israeli assassination attempt in 1997, in which Mossad agents injected him with poison on the streets of Jordan’s capital, Amman. Meshaal’s life was saved only after international pressure forced Israel to provide the antidote.
Today, Meshaal is regarded as one of the most influential Hamas leaders in exile, operating from Qatar. His diplomatic role as Hamas’ public face is still significant, particularly as the conflict drags on and international attention focuses on Gaza’s humanitarian catastrophe.
“Hamas has suffered a blow, but it is not finished,” Meshaal said. “We lost part of our ammunition and weapons, but Hamas is still recruiting young men and continues to manufacture a significant portion of its ammunition and weapons.” He refrained from providing specific details on how Hamas is replenishing its armaments, a key concern for Israeli military analysts monitoring the group’s capacity to sustain its armed resistance.
Israel’s ongoing military offensive against Hamas began in response to the unprecedented attack on October 7, 2023, when Hamas militants launched a coordinated assault on southern Israeli towns. Over 1,200 Israelis were killed, many civilians, in the attack, and around 250 were taken hostage, setting off one of the most intense and destructive periods of conflict in the region’s modern history.
The Israeli government, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, launched a sweeping air and ground offensive, targeting Hamas infrastructure across Gaza. The campaign has laid much of the Gaza Strip in ruins, resulting in the deaths of approximately 42,000 Palestinians, according to Palestinian health officials. Israeli authorities claim that around 17,000 of those killed were Hamas fighters, though the civilian death toll remains staggering.
While Israeli officials argue that Hamas as a cohesive military organization no longer exists, they acknowledge that remnants of the group are still capable of launching guerrilla-style attacks. On the one-year anniversary of the Hamas assault, the group fired four missiles toward Israel, all of which were intercepted. The rocket fire underscored Meshaal’s insistence that Hamas remains active despite Israel’s attempts to dismantle the group.
Hamas frames its fight against Israel within a broader context of Palestinian resistance that stretches back to the mid-20th century, an ongoing battle against what they consider the occupation of Palestinian lands. For Meshaal, the war is a reflection of a long-standing ideological and territorial conflict that shows little sign of resolution, especially under the current Israeli government.
“As long as the (Israeli) occupation exists, the region remains a ticking time bomb,” Meshaal told Reuters. He reiterated Hamas’ position that no long-term peace is achievable while Netanyahu’s right-wing government remains in power, accusing Israel of perpetuating conflict through its policies. The group’s founding charter explicitly calls for the destruction of Israel, which remains the bedrock of Hamas’ ideological framework.
Middle East analysts observe that Meshaal’s defiant rhetoric is aimed at galvanizing support both within Gaza and among Palestinians across the region, despite the toll the war has taken on the population. Joost Hiltermann, the Middle East and North Africa Program Director at the International Crisis Group, commented that while Hamas has taken significant losses, it retains the potential to regroup and mount future resistance, particularly as Israel has not yet articulated a clear long-term plan for the future of Gaza.
“Overall, I would say Hamas is alive and kicking still and… will probably come back at some point in Gaza,” Hiltermann said, adding that the group may not regain its pre-war strength but will continue to play a disruptive role in the region unless a political solution is found.
The human toll of the war has been devastating on both sides, with no end in sight. Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) continue to conduct operations in Gaza, targeting Hamas positions and seeking to neutralize what remains of the group’s leadership and military assets. Meanwhile, Gaza’s infrastructure lies in tatters, and its residents face a deepening humanitarian crisis, with widespread shortages of food, water, and medical supplies.
Israeli forces have also suffered casualties, with approximately 350 soldiers killed in combat in Gaza, according to Israeli military reports. The conflict has exacerbated already tense political divisions within Israel, where debates about the war’s aims, costs, and effectiveness rage on. While Israel’s military leaders claim they have dealt Hamas a crippling blow, Meshaal’s words serve as a reminder that the group believes it will endure and rise again.
Palestinian civilians, meanwhile, continue to bear the brunt of the war. With much of Gaza’s infrastructure in ruins, more than 2 million people are struggling to survive under conditions of extreme deprivation. Despite calls from international humanitarian organizations for ceasefires to allow aid into the region, efforts to halt the fighting have been sporadic and short-lived.
As the war drags into its second year, the prospects for a negotiated peace appear increasingly distant. Meshaal’s outright dismissal of any peace talks under the Netanyahu government mirrors the Israeli government’s long-standing refusal to engage with Hamas, given the group’s commitment to Israel’s destruction.
Both sides remain entrenched in their positions, with the Israeli government declaring that its objective is to eliminate Hamas once and for all, while Hamas insists it will continue to resist Israeli occupation. International efforts to mediate have so far made little headway, with countries such as the United States offering diplomatic support to Israel and condemning Hamas for its role in perpetuating the conflict.
For now, Gaza remains a flashpoint in a conflict that stretches far beyond its borders, drawing in regional actors and raising fears of wider instability. While the war has taken a heavy toll on both Hamas and Israel, Meshaal’s declaration that the group will rise “like a phoenix” reflects the intractable nature of the struggle and the deep divisions that continue to fuel violence in the region. As Meshaal remarked, “We have lost martyrs and weapons, but our spirit endures. As long as the occupation exists, the fire of resistance will never be extinguished.”
