U.S. Charges Hamas Leaders in Oct. 7 Massacre in Israel and Other Terrorist Attacks

Federal prosecutors charged Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas, and five senior members of the group with planning and carrying out years of terrorist attacks in Israel, including the Oct. 7 massacre, according to a sweeping complaint unsealed on Tuesday.

The criminal complaint, originally filed in New York in February, implicated two other senior members of Hamas not previously thought to be directly involved in the attacks. It also listed the number of Americans believed to have died at 43.

The other leaders named are Ismail Haniyeh, who had overseen Hamas’s political office in Qatar; Muhammad Deif, the commander of the group’s military wing; Marwan Issa, the deputy commander of the group’s military wing; Ali Barakeh, a senior Hamas official based in Beirut; and Khaled Meshal, a former political leader of the group who remains a top official. Mr. Deif and Mr. Issa were killed in Israeli airstrikes during the fighting in Gaza. Mr. Haniyeh, a top negotiator in cease-fire talks, was assassinated in Iran after a bomb was covertly smuggled into the guesthouse where he was staying.

Mr. Meshal, who resides in Qatar, and Mr. Haniyeh were not known to be involved in carrying out the Oct. 7 attacks. The two men, along with Mr. Barakeh, were all outside Gaza when the attacks happened, catching Israel by surprise. Mr. Haniyeh was living in Doha before his death.

American and Israeli intelligence believed the plans surrounding the attack were a closely guarded secret, known only by a select few inside Gaza like Mr. Sinwar and Mr. Deif. If true, the American government’s charges against the political members of Hamas could cast a different light on the group’s activities.