JERUSALEM – Hamas has chosen Ismail Haniyeh, a popular leader from Gaza, as the next Palestinian prime minister, party officials said yesterday.

Although the appointment is yet to be officially confirmed, the 43-year-old will lead the first Islamist government in the modern history of the Holy Land after last month’s unexpected general election victory.

“We have decided to nominate brother Ismail Haniyeh as the prime minister,” a senior official said after a meeting of some of Hamas MPs.

Mr Haniyeh’s first problem is how to address the newly elected members of the Palestinian parliament when they are sworn in on Saturday in Ramallah as Israeli travel restrictions ban him from reaching the West Bank.

While a video link is likely to be used to get round the travel problem in the short-term, Mr Haniyeh faces more profound problems given indications from Israel that it will do all it can to destabilize a Hamas-led government.

Hamas is regarded as a banned terrorist group by Israel after numerous attacks organized by the group’s militant wing against Israeli civilians during the intifada.

Israel delayed the payment of 30 million pounds in tax rebates owed to the Palestinian people after the election victory. The money, badly needed by a decrepit Palestinian economy, was eventually paid but all the indications are that Israel will withhold future payments once the Hamas administration is installed.

Dov Weisglass, an Israeli prime ministerial adviser, was quoted as saying: “The idea is to put the Palestinians on a diet but not make them die of hunger.”

Mr Haniyeh was born in Gaza and is a popular local figure. He was chosen to head the list of candidates in the recent general election.

One of his first challenges will be to establish a working relationship with the Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas, who belongs to Hamas’s great rival, Fatah.

Mr Abbas will deliver a keynote speech at Saturday’s gathering of new MPs where he will set out his expectations of how Hamas will behave in government. Palestinian officials said that Mr Abbas is expected to appeal to Hamas to respect “one weapon” – the “legal weapon”.

Mr Haniyeh played down his expected appointment. “Hamas is still continuing its internal consultations to determine who will be asked to head the coming government,” he said.