Khaled Mashaal
Khaled MashaalFlash 90

Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal announced on Saturday night that he would not run again for the leadership of the terrorist organization.

Speaking in the Qatari capital Doha, Mashaal said, “Just as Ismail Haniyeh is a former prime minister, Khaled Mashaal next year will be the former head of Hamas's political bureau.”

Mashaal threatened in his speech that “the weapons possessed by Hamas today are double what they were during Operation Protective Edge two years ago.”

His remarks confirm reports from June that Mashaal would not seek another term in the group's internal elections.

Mashaal has led the terror organization for the past twenty years, largely from his office in Damascus.

Hamas's internal elections are scheduled to take place in the first half of 2017. Haniyeh's name has been mentioned as a candidate for Mashaal's replacement, but a more likely candidate is senior Hamas leader Mousa Abu Marzouk.