RELIGION

Hamas says Ismail Haniyeh chosen as Islamic group's leader

Associated Press
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FILE - In this Friday, Dec. 12, 2014 file photo, Palestinian top Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh greets supporters during a rally to commemorate the 27th anniversary of the Hamas militant group, at the main road in Jebaliya in the northern Gaza Strip. Hamas confirms Ismail Haniyeh, a former Gaza prime minister, has been elected as Islamic militant group's top leader. (AP Photo/Adel Hana, File) (The Associated Press)

FILE - In this Aug. 28, 2014, file photo, Khaled Mashaal former leader of the Palestinian Islamic militant movement Hamas, that has governed Gaza since a 2007 takeover, speaks during a speech held in Katara in Doha, Qatar. Hamas confirms Ismail Haniyeh, a former Gaza prime minister, has been elected as the Islamic militant group's new top leader. (AP Photo/Osama Faisal, File) (The Associated Press)

Israeli forces take positions during clashes following a protest in support of Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike in Israeli jails, in the West Bank village of Beita, southeast of Nablus city, Friday, May 5, 2017. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed) (The Associated Press)

Hamas is confirming that its former Gaza prime minister Ismail Haniyeh has been chosen as the Islamic militant group's top leader.

Spokesman for the militant group Fawzi Barhoum says Haniyeh was picked Saturday as Hamas politburo chief. He replaces Khaled Mashaal, its longtime leader.

The announcement comes shortly after Gaza's rulers unveiled a new, seemingly more pragmatic political program aimed at ending the group's international isolation.

Hamas is trying to rebrand itself as an Islamic national liberation movement, rather than a branch of the pan-Arab Muslim Brotherhood, which has been outlawed by Egypt. It has also dropped explicit language calling for Israel's destruction, though it retains the goal of eventually "liberating" all of historic Palestine, which includes what is now Israel.

Hamas has ruled Gaza since 2007.