Incites young people in Judea and Samaria, but sits on the fence: the inclusion policy of Sinwar and Hamas

The leader of the organization in the Gaza Strip sounds more right to confront than ever before, but there is a very large gap between the slogans he blossoms and the reality on the ground.

Sinwar does not want to fall on his sword precisely when Gaza is recovering, and he prefers to use those who do not know the nuances of Palestinian politics as cannon fodder

Avi Issacharoff

01/05/2022

Sunday, 01 May 2022, 11:11 Updated: 14:26

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In the video: Throwing stones at policemen in the al-Aqsa Mosque, April 20, 2022 (documentation on social networks according to section 27A of the Copyright Law)

On the eve of Eid al-Fitr, the holiday that ends the month of Ramadan, Yahya Sinwar can also breathe a sigh of relief: he managed to move the last month without dragging the Gaza Strip into another unnecessary war, at least for now.

True, Sinwar sounded militant, aggressive, confrontational, perhaps even more so than ever, in his speech in Gaza.

But the gap between the emerging reality on the ground, and the multitude of slogans and slogans that blossomed into the hall space in Gaza, was large - perhaps even larger than ever.

"Abu Ibrahim," the man who corresponded with Benjamin Netanyahu and asked him to take a "calculated risk," made his risk assessment last month.

He watched from the sidelines in repeated clashes around the Temple Mount, with a very dramatic and unusual entry of Israeli security forces into the al-Aqsa Mosque and the arrest of hundreds of Palestinians there and hundreds of young Palestinians calling out Muhammad Daf, commander of Hamas' military wing in Gaza, and Abu Obeida, his loyal spokesman. Launch rockets into Israel.

More on Walla!

A day will come and there will be a brave leadership here that will say: Jerusalem and the Temple Mount are all ours

To the full article

Hamas leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar (Photo: AP)

And yet, Sinwar preferred not to do so.

The Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip has realized that precisely now, when Gaza enjoys (relatively) economic stabilization, rehabilitation and construction of new cities, launching rockets at Israel may give it some points in public opinion in the West Bank, but return the Gaza Strip to its ruins and hide in unsafe tunnels around the Strip. .

Sinwar preferred not to fall on his sword in the war with Israel, and to let others do so.

From here, the almost embarrassing call was heard yesterday, for anyone who has a rifle "or a butcher knife" in his hand, to hit the Zionist enemy.

For now, he probably does not intend to do so, despite the respectable arsenal of rockets he has at his disposal.

It is possible that this "exciting" appeal by Sinwar to the Palestinian public in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and even within Israel will succeed in leaving an impression on many young Palestinians who do not have too much understanding of the nuances of Palestinian politics.

A bit like those "Shabab" who called themselves "The Morabiton" in al-Aqsa, who mainly sought excitement and adrenaline throwing stones on the Temple Mount at the Israeli security forces, and in between we smoked cigarettes outside the mountain compound even though it was Ramadan.

Protesters hold Palestinian flags during clashes on Temple Mount (Photo: Reuters)

A little older and experienced listeners in Palestinian politics will understand that Sinwar wants to use them as cannon fodder while he is interested in celebrating with his family Eid al-Fitr peacefully in Khan Yunis, where he was born.

The militant line in Sinwar's speech stems, among other things, from the criticism he has received within Hamas in recent years, in light of his attempts to talk to Israel that have brought with it quite a few girls (money suitcases for those who have forgotten) and the Fatah leadership.

Sinwar sought reconciliation with Fatah and the PA and elections to parliament and the presidency, a move torpedoed by Abu Mazen.

This conciliatory line led to his almost dismissal in the last elections to the Hamas political bureau in Gaza.

This is where Sinwar's understanding came from, that one might "do weak", but in the modern media age - what matters is "speak strong".

Bottom line, unlike May a year ago and Operation Wall Guard, Sinwar remains watching over the fence.

True, he encourages and spurs the other players, but prefers the spectator seat in this game between Israel and Hamas.

12,000 workers from Gaza who go to work in Israel every day, new cities and residential buildings in the Gaza Strip and more, probably make the difference for him, certainly and certainly when he enjoys unprecedented public support in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

More on Walla!

• Already 102 years ago: this is how the confrontation on the Western Wall between Muslims and Jews began

• IDF Spokesman: "We do not see an organization behind the wave of terrorism - the tense weeks are still ahead of us"

• Clashes on the Temple Mount: Palestinians threw stones and fired fireworks from the mosque at security forces

• Saving from the first moment: How to start saving in four simple steps

But in at least one place Sinwar is in trouble - and here lies his great failure and the very harsh criticism he leveled at Mansour Abbas from Ram. Sinwar, the man whose life was saved in prison thanks to an Israeli doctor who negotiated indirectly with Netanyahu and the current government, failed this year. Last year: he failed to light the cities involved.

Yesterday he addressed the residents of the Triangle, the Galilee, Jaffa and where not and called Abbas a traitor.

And yet, if we put aside for a moment the two terrorist attacks in Be'er Sheva and Hadera that left the territories of Israel, then the vast majority of the Arab-Israeli public did not take to the streets and preferred to maintain their daily routine.

While the RAAM party, the flesh and blood of the "Muslim Brotherhood", ostensibly the "brother" of Hamas members in Gaza, preferred to join a right-wing coalition led by Naftali Bennett, while beeping over the "brothers" in Gaza or those from the northern faction.

And yet a word of reservation.

We are still at the beginning of two particularly sensitive weeks, at least until Nakba Day, on May 15th.

The escalation can appear suddenly for a variety of reasons.

And last month, too, we were one step away from another round of fighting with Gaza, around the flag march in Jerusalem and the participation of Itamar Bin Gvir.

All those critics will come and say - how is it that a Knesset member is prevented from walking in the legal territories of the State of Israel?

Justice may be with them.

But for the umpteenth time, justice cannot set policy.

Sometimes you have to be smart.

Palestinians during clashes in al-Aqsa Mosque (Photo: Reuters)

The recommendation of GSS Chief Ronen Bar and Prime Minister Naftali Bennett's decision to prevent Ben Gvir from walking in the Nablus Gate area during the flag march at the height of tensions are the ones that ultimately made the difference between today's current situation and last May's. Ben Gvir is a symbol in the eyes of the Palestinians, as Sharon was in September 2000. His walk on the flag march inside the Old City would probably change the situation completely, and even Sinwar who tried to stop the escalation and ordered the arrest of Islamic Jihad men fired rockets, was not Standing in the burst and giving the green light to launch rockets at Israel, Hamas also has internal politics and this must be remembered.

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