Osama Mazini

Osama Mazini
أسامة مزيني
Mazini in 2023
Chairman of the Hamas Shura Council[1]
In office
16 March 2021 – 16 October 2023
Preceded byUnknown (maybe Nizar Awadallah)
Succeeded byMuhammad Ismail Darwish
Minister of Education of the Gaza Strip
In office
14 June 2007 – 2 June 2014
Prime MinisterIsmail Haniyeh
Preceded byOffice established
Personal details
Born(1966-03-16)16 March 1966
Gaza City, Egyptian-administered Gaza Strip, Palestine
Died16 October 2023(2023-10-16) (aged 57)
Gaza Strip, Palestine
PartyHamas
Alma materAin Shams University
Islamic University of Gaza
OccupationPolitician

Osama Mazini (Arabic: أسامة مزيني; 16 March 1966 – 16 October 2023) was a Palestinian politician who served as the chairman of the Hamas Shura Council from March 2021 until his assassination in October 2023.[2] A senior member of Hamas, he was also a member of the Hamas Political Bureau in Gaza until his assassination during the Gaza War.

Mazini was in charge of negotiation affairs dealing with captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.[3]

In a 2006 sermon, he criticized Pope Benedict XVI over the latter's remarks on Islam, saying that the pontiff was "ignorant and stupid", "criminal and arrogant", and "a cruel man, spilling blood, who strove to kill".[4][5]

During the 2008–2009 Gaza War, Mazini warned Israel about sending in ground forces, stating "the people of Gaza are waiting to see the Zionist enemy in Gaza to tear them into pieces of flesh."[6]

In the aftermath of the October 7 attacks on Israel, Mazini was a member of the Hamas Political Bureau in Gaza.[7] Mazini was killed in an airstrike conducted by the Israeli Air Force on 16 October 2023 during the Gaza war. He was 57.[8][9] Hamas confirmed his death on 21 October.[7]

References

  1. ↑ "Hamas presents new leadership including a woman for the first time". YNet Global. Retrieved 23 August 2026. The Shura Council will be headed by Osama Mazini, known as Abu Hamam, who previously served as Minister of Education in the Hamas government and who held the Gilad Shalit portfolio.
  2. ↑ "Hamas presents new leadership including a woman for the first time". YNet Global. Retrieved 23 August 2026. The Shura Council will be headed by Osama Mazini, known as Abu Hamam, who previously served as Minister of Education in the Hamas government and who held the Gilad Shalit portfolio.
  3. ↑ Hamas leader: mediation has ended with no deal in the case of the Israeli soldier Archived 25 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine Ma'an News Agency. 11 December 2006.
  4. ↑ Marcus, Itamar; Crook, Barbara (25 September 2006). "Hamas: Pope is Nazi, arrogant, stupid and criminal; Allah will punish Pope in due time". Palestinian Media Watch. Archived from the original on 20 February 2009.
  5. ↑ "The Nazi Pope". The Atlantic. 25 September 2006. Archived from the original on 3 June 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  6. ↑ Barzak, Ibrahim. Israel demands monitors as part of a Gaza truce Archived 11 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine Associated Press. 31 December 2008.
  7. 1 2 "«حماس» تؤكد مقتل عضو مكتبها السياسي في غزة أسامة المزيني". Al-Sharq Al-Awsat. 21 October 2023. Retrieved 9 September 2025.
  8. ↑ "Hamas Hostage Negotiator Killed, Israel Says". The Wall Street Journal (WSJ). Archived from the original on 16 October 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  9. ↑ "Top Hamas official who handled Shalit file eliminated". Arutz Sheva. Archived from the original on 17 October 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
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