Opinion on the Gaza Trap
The 2007 Gaza Attack by the Hamas Group: Status, Status, and Prospects for a Solution to the Israeli-Sufa War
BEIRUT — Hamas, which has ruled the Gaza Strip since 2007, launched an attack inside Israel over the weekend, killing hundreds and taking others hostage. The group’s unprecedented border break sent fighters inside border communities and military installations shocked Israel and its allies, and raised questions about their ability and strategy.
The group was founded in 1987 by a Palestinian refugee who was living in Gaza during the first uprising against Israel.
The U.S. State Department has designated Hamas a terrorist group in 1997. The European Union and other Western countries also consider it a terrorist organization.
The group has vowed to annihilate Israel and has been responsible for many suicide bombings and other deadly attacks on civilians and Israeli soldiers.
Hamas’ current leaders are Yehia Sinwar, who is in the Gaza Strip, and an exiled leader named Ismail Haniyeh. They worked with Iran and its allies to make the leadership more aligned with them. Many of the group’s leaders have moved to Lebanon.
Israel has forged peace deals with Arab countries without having to give up its fight with the Palestinians. The U.S. is attempting to broker a deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia that would end the war between the two countries.
What Do We Know About Israel and What Has It Learned About Israel in the Sixth Day of Gaza? An Israeli Prime Minister Explains The War Between Israel and Hamas
Hundreds of its 40,000 fighters joined the assault. Israel claims the group has over 30,000 fighters and rockets, some of which can be fired with a range of more than 200 miles.
Shia fundamentalists ruled Iran after the 1979 revolution. Hezbollah was created shortly after, said Northeastern University associate professor Max Abrahms, to help export the Iranian revolution and project Iranian power in the region.
Abrahms called state sponsorship of terrorism a “risky game,” and he said Iran’s link to Hamas and Hezbollah “substantially increases the likelihood that Iran will be directly attacked by Israel.”
“I don’t think [Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan] Nasrallah would authorize a major attack against Israel without approval of Iranian leaders,” he said Monday. “Whereas I don’t know that Hamas waits for Iranian authorization … although this one might have been different,” he said, referencing the surprise attack from Gaza on Saturday morning.
Hamas can rely on Hezbollah, as well as the broader region. Hezbollah engaged in fighting with the Israeli military on the northern border of Israel near Shebaa Farms, a land that is controlled by Israel but also claimed by Lebanon, in an attempt to see if Israeli forces were capable of responding after the Hamas attack. Hezbollah may seek to gain further advantage if Israel is fighting Hamas in Gaza and the West Bank.
Neumann is a visiting fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Hezbollah has a larger fighting force that is better equipped than Hamas.
“Since 2021, Iran and [Hezbollah leader] Nasrallah have understood that Hamas is a better player than they thought. Hamas is needed in order to weaken Israel.
Hamas attempted to unify different groups of Palestinians after fighting with Israel, which will affect 20% of Israel’s population.
The Israeli military has called it the worst day in its history, saying that more than 900 Israelis were killed by Hamas.
The israel-hamas conflict signals coordination between Israel and Hezbollah, the UN’s top ten in the Middle East
The leader of Raisi held phone calls with the leaders of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad after the attacks against Israel began.
“We know that there were meetings in Syria and in Lebanon, if I remember correctly, with the other leaders of the terror armies that surround Israel,” he said. People for Hamas didn’t reply to requests for comment.
“Hezbollah’s response from southern Lebanon is not opportunistic,” said Lina Khatib, director of the SOAS Middle East Institute at the University of London.
The fighting around the northern Israeli border is at a much smaller scale than in southern Israel near Gaza, the Palestinian coastal enclave to Israel’s southwest. But the double-pronged attacks at both poles of Israel left many fearing a more widespread, regional escalation of violence.
The region was attacked on Sunday with rockets and drones. The United Nations urged everyone to exercise restraint to de-escalate the situation after Hezbollah and Israel exchanged fire across the border.
The Israeli military said Monday it killed several fighters crossing the border from Lebanon. Hezbollah said that one of its fighters was killed in Israel’s response. An armed group called the Palestinian Islamic Jihad claimed it had injured seven Israeli soldiers.
Israel launched cross-border airstrikes after militant groups in southern Lebanon intensified their attacks on northern Israel.
Source: Fighting with Israel signals coordination between Hamas and Hezbollah, analysts say
Hamas Can Defend the Israelis In a War Of Attrition: a Reply to Ali Khamenei
Ali Khamenei denied that Iran was involved in the attack on Israel. But, in televised comments Tuesday, he said: “We kiss the hands of those who planned the attack on the Zionist regime.”
Western and Middle Eastern intelligence officials have accused Iran of providing training, money and other assistance to Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip, who carried out an unprecedented, multifront assault on Israel on Saturday.
Why might Hamas want to draw the I.D.F. into a bloody ground battle? Hamas is the uncontested power in Gaza, though elections have not been held since 2006. Neither the Palestinian Authority nor its main political party, Fatah, the business community, civil society nor family clan leaders can effectively challenge Hamas, which has become only stronger after each successive conflict with Israel. Hamas has been able to build and buy more rockets despite an Israeli blockade, improve their range and accuracy, and provide offensive combat training to its fighters in order to launch a simultaneous assault on 22 Israeli locations. Hamas is certain that it can defeat the Israelis in a war of attrition.
