US official: Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar a ‘psychopath and messianic’

Barbara Leaf calls Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar a “psychopath” and “messianic” in testimony before a Senate subcommittee hearing.

The US assistant secretary of state for near eastern affairs is asked to characterize the role Qatar has played in mediating between Israel and Hamas throughout the war.

Leaf acknowledges that there have long been mixed feelings in Israel regarding the role of Qatar, which has hosted Hamas leaders and provided funds to Gaza at the request of the US and Israel.

“Qatar really does punch above its weight, and it has a nimbleness of approach with a variety of actors that we don’t have relations with, but that we need to communicate with… They have worked tirelessly on this hostage piece,” she says. “There has been very understandable frustration from the families, from the Israeli government [who say], ‘Can’t Qatar do more? Can’t the US put more pressure on Qatar to put more pressure on Hamas?’

“There’s a cadre of political officials of Hamas in Doha — and boy do they squeeze them, I can assure you they squeeze them — But at the end of the day, there’s one guy 10 stories below the ground: a psychopath, messianic in his own belief that he has established himself in history, and [he believes that] there’s a sunk cost of having lost thousands of fighters and carnage in Gaza,” Leaf says, indicating that Doha doesn’t have the same leverage over Sinwar, who is the ultimate decisionmaker.

“Qatar’s ability to do the indirect mediation is critical to our interest and to Israel’s, but I would say they have become a very trusted partner of ours,” she adds.