Khalil al-Hayya, deputy head of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, announced on Sunday that the movement will finalize consultations to select a new leader within days, following the assassination of its political bureau chief, Ismail Haniyeh, in Tehran on Wednesday.

Al-Hayya made the statement during a eulogy for Haniyeh in Doha, Qatar, as relayed by Hamas via its Telegram channel.

"Don't worry about Hamas," al-Hayya assured the audience. "We have lost a leader, but the movement is governed through our institutions. There is no vacuum with the martyrdom of the leader."

He added, "We are a unified leadership by the grace of God. We hold our meetings and manage our affairs with full responsibility. It is only a matter of days before we conclude our consultations to choose a new leader for this movement, to continue on the path of Ismail (Haniyeh), to continue on the path of Sheikh (Ahmed Yassin, the movement's founder), and to continue on the path of the martyrs of our Palestinian people."

On Saturday, Hamas announced in a statement that its leadership had begun a broad consultation process within its leadership and Shura institutions to select a new head of the movement's political bureau following Haniyeh's assassination.

On Wednesday, Hamas and Iran confirmed the assassination of Haniyeh in an Israeli airstrike that targeted his residence in Tehran. This occurred the day after his participation in the inauguration ceremony of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi.

Haniyeh's assassination came amid Israel's devastating war on Gaza, launched with US support on October 7th, 2023. The war has resulted in over 130,000 Palestinian casualties, including over 10,000 missing persons, with the majority being children and women.

Tel Aviv continues its war, ignoring the UN Security Council's resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire and the International Court of Justice's orders to take measures to prevent acts of genocide and improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza.