Khaled Mashal, (Arabic: خالد مشعل Khālid Mashʻal, also transcribed Khaled Mashaal, Khaled Meshaal and Khalid Mish'al; born 28 May 1956) has been the main leader of the Palestinian political organization Hamas since the assassination of Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi in 2004. In addition, Mashal heads the Syrian branch of the political bureau of Hamas.
Mashal was born in Silwad, a village north of Ramallah and moved to Jordan in 1967. While attending Kuwait University, Mashal, as an Islamic student leader, challenged the dominance of Yasser Arafat and the Palestine Liberation Organization, participating in the foundation of the Islamic Haqq Bloc, which competed with Fatah for leadership of the General Union of Palestinian Students in Kuwait. After the founding of Hamas in 1987, Mashal came to lead the Kuwaiti branch of the organization. Mashal moved from Kuwait to Jordan in 1991. Since the expulsion of the Hamas leadership from Jordan in August 1999, Mashal lived in Qatar before moving to the Syrian capital of Damascus in 2001. In 2010, The British Magazine New Statesman Listed Khaled Mashal at number 18th in the list of "The World's 50 Most Influential Figures 2010". In February 2012, as the Syrian civil war progressed, Mashal left Syria and returned to Qatar. Soon after, he announced his support for the Syrian opposition.
Read more about Khaled Mashal: Early Life and Membership With Hamas, Assassination Attempt, Exile, Representing Hamas Internationally, Prisoner Swap