“Meshaal is a hardliner, much more than Haniyeh was, but, on the other hand, he’s eating from the hand of the Qataris so the Qataris have a lot of potential influence,” he said. Meshaal has always rejected any kind of permanent peace with Israel.
He added: “But in the end, the person who has the final word is Sinwar. The leadership outside Gaza doesn’t have much influence because Sinwar has all the cards in his hands, the hostages, so he determines what’s going to happen. These guys outside are more mediators to go between Sinwar and the negotiators. Meshaal, like Haniyeh, will be limited in his capabilities.”
However, the assassination has sent a powerful message to Hamas. The source said: “It’s more likely after the assassination, another week or two once things have settled, that the assassination will enhance the possibility of a deal because Sinwar and the Gaza leadership realises time isn’t on their side like they anticipated before.
“They anticipated a rift between the US and Israelis and the Americans will push for a ceasefire and compliance with Hamas’s demands because of the elections. It didn’t happen, not in the sense Hamas had expected.”
While he admits Hamas succeeded in bringing the Palestinian issue to the world stage, with the developing crisis with Iran and Hezbollah on Israel’s northern border, the attention is once again shifting away from Gaza, he said.
‘I’m really afraid’
For the families of the hostages, it is a tense time. Shay Dickman, a cousin of Carmel Gat, 40, told The Telegraph: “For the last 300 days it’s been a mixture of the feeling of fear and hope. It changes with the chances for a deal every time.
“Just last week there was news that we are on the verge of having a deal and the hopes were so up that I was feeling she was right next to us. Now, I’m more afraid. I know that what happened [the assassination] will affect things, but I don’t know in which direction. I’m really afraid.”
As of Friday, Mr Netanyahu’s office said they were still waiting for a response from Hamas after this week’s Rome talks.
Jonathan Dekel-Chen’s son Sagui, 35, is being held in Gaza. What comes next after the assassination remains uncertain for all those waiting for loved ones. “I hope the whole process will not collapse, whoever committed it,” he told The Telegraph.
“Whoever committed this assassination, the timing seems to put the lives of the hostages in grave danger and makes the negotiations feel even more distant than they were before.”