Khaled Mashal, also known as Khaled Mashaal (Arabic: خالد مشعل) (b. 1956) is a leader of Hamas. He has been described alternately as the "political leader" of the group and the leader of Hamas's Syrian branch. He currently resides in Damascus and is personally negotating a prisoner exchange deal that would free captive Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. [1] Meshal has personally confirmed that Gilad is alive. [2] Arabic ( or just ), is the largest member of the family of Semitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family (classification: South Central Semitic) and is closely related to Hebrew, Amharic, and Aramaic. ... Hamas (Arabic: ‎; acronym: Arabic: ‎, or Harakat al-Muqawama al-Islamiyya or Islamic Resistance Movement; the Arabic acronym means zeal) is a Palestinian Sunni Islamist organization that currently (since January 2006) forms the majority party of the Palestinian National Authority. ... Damascus at sunset Damascus ( translit: Also commonly: الشام ash-Shām) is the largest city of Syria and is also the capital. ... Gilad Shalit (Hebrew: , born 28 August 1986) is a corporal in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). ...

Early life and Hamas

Khaled Mashal was born in the Silwad neighborhood of Ramallah^[1], then ruled by Jordan. His family moved to Kuwait and lived there until 1991 Gulf War. Mashal holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Physics from Kuwait University. While at the University, he was an Islamist Palestinian leader, challenging the dominance of Yasser Arafat's Palestine Liberation Organization on the campus. Mashal participated in the foundation of the Islamic Haqq Bloc, which competed with Fatah on leading the General Union for the Palestinian Students in Kuwait. Ramallah (Arabic:  ) is a Palestinian city in the West Bank of approximately 57,000 residents. ... Map of the West Bank today Rule of the West Bank and East Jerusalem by Jordan. ... Combatants Kuwait United States United Kingdom Saudi Arabia Egypt Qatar France Canada UN Coalition Republic of Iraq Commanders Norman Schwarzkopf Saddam Hussein Strength 660,000 360,000 Casualties 378 dead, 1,000 wounded 25,000 dead, 75,000 wounded The Gulf War (2 August 1990 – 28 February 1991) was a... A Bachelor of Science (B.S., B.Sc. ... Kuwait University (KU) was established in October 1966 , five years after Kuwaits independence from Britain, pursuant to an Amiri Decree, which postulated organization of higher education in Kuwait. ... Islamism is a political ideology derived from the conservative religious views of Muslim fundamentalism. ... Arafat redirects here. ... The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) (Arabic: ‎;   or Munazzamat al-Tahrir al-Filastiniyyah) is a political and paramilitary organization regarded by the Arab League since October 1974 as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people. ... Please wikify (format) this article or section as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ...

When Iraq invaded Kuwait, Mashal moved to Jordan and began his work with Hamas as one of its founders. He has been a member of the Hamas Political Bureau since its inception and became its chairman in 1996. He married in 1981 and has seven children.

Assassination attempt

On September 25, 1997 Mashal was the target of an assassination attempt carried out by the Israeli Mossad under orders from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his security cabinet. Ten Mossad agents carrying Canadian passports entered Jordan, where Mashal was living, and injected him with a toxic substance. At the time of the assassination attempt Mashal was considered Hamas' Jordanian branch chief. September 25 is the 268th day of the year (269th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1997 (MCMXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Assassin and Targeted killing redirect here. ... For the Haganah branch responsible for coordinating Jewish immigration into the British Mandate of Palestine, see Mossad Lealiyah Bet   (Hebrew: המוסד למודיעין ולתפקידים מיוחדים, The Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations, often referred to as Mossad, meaning The Institute) is Israels intelligence agency and is responsible for intelligence collection, counter-terrorism, covert... The Prime Minister of Israel (Hebrew: ראש הממשלה, Rosh HaMemshala, lit. ...   (Hebrew: בִּנְיָמִין נְתַנְיָהוּ (without niqqud: בנימין נתניהו), Hebrew transliteration written in English: Binyamin Netanyahu, nicknamed Bibi) (born October 21, 1949, Tel Aviv) was the 9th Prime Minister of Israel and is a leading figure in the Likud party. ... For Microsoft Corporations universal login service, see Microsoft Passport Network. ...

Jordanian authorities discovered the assassination attempt and arrested two Mossad agents who had engaged in the attempt. Jordan's King Hussein then demanded that Benjamin Netanyahu turn over the poison antidote, and at first Netanyahu refused. As the incident began to grow in political significance, however, American President Bill Clinton intervened and forced Netanyahu to turn over the antidote. ^[2] Hussein bin Talal (Arabic: ; November 14, 1935 – February 7, 1999) was the King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan from 1952 to 1999. ... An antidote is a substance which can counteract a form of poisoning. ... William Jefferson Bill Clinton (born William Jefferson Blythe III on August 19, 1946) was the 42nd President of the United States, serving from 1993 to 2001. ...

Jordanian authorities later released the Mossad agents in exchange for the release of terrorist Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, the founder and "spiritual leader" of Hamas who was serving a life sentence in an Israeli prison. Sheikh Ahmed Ismail Yassin (~1937 — March 22, 2004) was the leader of Hamas until he was killed by an Israeli helicopter gunship. ...

In August 1999, possibly in reaction to pressure from the Clinton Administration, Jordanian police issued an arrest warrant for Mashal in advance of a visit to the country by then-Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. ^[3] Madeleine Korbel Albright (born Marie Jana Korbelová on May 15, 1937) served as the 64th United States Secretary of State. ...

Representing Hamas internationally

In October 2002, Mashal is believed to have met with then-Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah to discuss the Israeli-Palestinian conflict during the World Assembly of Muslim Youth in Riyadh. The outcome of that meeting is unknown. According to Haaretz, supposed Hamas documents discovered by Israeli security forces described the meeting as "excellent". ^[4] Mashal was named the most senior figure in Hamas after the assassination of Sheikh Ahmed Yassin. King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud (Arabic: عبد الله بن عبد العزيز آل سعود, born 1924) [1] is the King of Saudi Arabia. ... The World Assembly of Muslim Youth is an islamic organization whose stated purpose is to establish a platform where Muslim youth can get together in an Islamic environment. ... Riyadh (Arabic: ‎ ar-Riyāḍ) is the capital of the kingdom of Saudi Arabia, located in Ar Riyad Province in the Najd region. ... Haaretz (Hebrew: (help· info), The Land) is an Israeli newspaper, founded in 1919. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Mashal was a vocal critic of former Palestinian Authority President, Chairman Yasser Arafat, often refusing to follow directives issued by the PA regarding ceasefires with Israel. Mashal is considered a key force behind this policy, along with the late Sheikh Ahmed Yassin. He attended the funeral of Yasser Arafat in Cairo, alongside the Saudi Royal family, in Cairo, Egypt, on November 12, 2004. On 9 December 2005, Mashal addressed a crowd in Damascus, Syria on the informal truce with the government of Israel that would end at the end of the year, stating that, "We will not enter a new truce and our people are preparing for a new round of conflict." The West Bank The Palestinian National Authority (PNA or PA) is a semi-autonomous state institution nominally governing the bulk of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip (which it calls the Palestinian Territories). It was established as a part of Oslo accords between the PLO and Israel. ... Arafat redirects here. ... Sheikh Ahmed Ismail Yassin (~1937 — March 22, 2004) was the leader of Hamas until he was killed by an Israeli helicopter gunship. ... Arafat redirects here. ... Nickname: Al Qahirah (The Triumphant City) Cairos location in Egypt Coordinates: Governor Dr. Abdul Azim Wazir Area    - City 210 km²  - Metro 1,492 km² Population (2005)  - City 7,438,376  - Density 35,420/km²  - Urban 10,834,495  - Metro 15,200,000 Time zone EET (UTC+2)  - Summer (DST... November 12 is the 316th day of the year (317th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 49 days remaining. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... December 9 is the 343rd day (344th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Damascus at sunset Damascus ( translit: Also commonly: الشام ash-Shām) is the largest city of Syria and is also the capital. ...

Speaking from Damascus, on 29 January 2006, after the shock Hamas victory in the legislative council elections Meshaal stated that Hamas had no plans to disarm. He said that Hamas was ready to "unify the weapons of Palestinian factions, with Palestinian consensus, and form an army like any independent state... an army that protects our people against aggression". January 29 is the 29th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

In March 2006, Mashal met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov for political talks. Russia called on Hamas to transform itself into a purely political organisation, recognise Israel's right to exist, and abide by prior peace accords with Israel. Meshal refused to compromise on the Hamas platform demanding the destruction of Israel. A minister for foreign affairs, or foreign minister, is a cabinet minister who helps form the governmental foreign policy of a sovereign nation. ... Sergey Lavrov. ... The Russia-Hamas talks of 2006 began on March 3, 2006, when Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met with Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal to discuss the future of Hamas as the political leadership of Palestine. ... Politics is the process by which groups make decisions. ...

On July 10, 2006, Mashal spoke authoritatively concerning the Israeli prisoner Gilad Shalit, stating Shalit was a prisoner of war and demanded a prisoner swap. ^[5] Gilad Shalit (Hebrew: , born 28 August 1986) is a corporal in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). ... Geneva Convention definition A prisoner of war (POW) is a soldier, sailor, airman, or marine who is imprisoned by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict. ...

On July 31, 2006, Mashal warned, in a Reuter interview, Palestinians everywhere against attempts to separate the Lebanese and Palestinian issues. http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/am/publish/article_19393.shtml.

References

External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:

Khaled Mashal

• The Real Significance of the Attempted Israeli Assassination of Khaled Meshal in Jordan in Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, January/February 1998, by Israel Shahak
• Hamas to end truce with Israel, BBC News, 9 December 2005
• HARDtalk interview with Khaled Mashal broadcast by the BBC, 19 April 2004
• Mashal proposes a new Palestinian army including the Hamas militia after the Palestinian election, 29 January 2006
• BBC - Khaled Meshaal interview Monday, 19 April, 2004
• BBC - Transcript: Khaled Meshaal interview , Wednesday, 8 February 2006
• BBC - Profile: Khaled Meshaal of Hamas Wednesday, 8 February 2006
• Khaled Meshaal: Our message to the Israelis is this: We do not fight you because you belong to a certain faith or culture.
• BBC - Moscow urges Hamas to transform Friday, 3 March 2006