Status: 10.10.2023, 19:52 PM
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Members of the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas' armed wing, at a parade in the Gaza Strip in December 2022. ©
Hamas' devastating terrorist attack is a colossal failure for Israel's army. Hamas itself is obviously surprised by the "success" of its attack. This in particular could prove to be a disaster for the organization, says one expert.
Tel Aviv/Gaza - The devastating terrorist attack in the Israeli border area was apparently meticulously planned by Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, for months. However, the Islamist group itself was probably surprised at how many people it was ultimately able to kill in hostile Israel. And how little resistance there was initially from the Israeli army, which was actually clearly superior.
The Islamist organization has caused the worst bloodbath in the history of the Jewish state, with more than 900 dead and more than 2600,<> injured – including women, children and old people.
How could something so terrible happen?
For years, Israel had invested in a tightly secured barrier on the border with the Gaza Strip to ward off Hamas attacks. It even includes an underground wall with sensors at a depth of several meters. It had been built as an antidote to Hamas' underground attack tunnels and was considered virtually insurmountable.
"On the morning of October 7 — a date that will go down in history as one of the Jewish people's darkest days — Israel's security concept crumbled as Hamas terrorists poured over, under and around the Gaza border fence," the Times of Israel wrote on Tuesday.
How did Hamas outwit the Israeli army, which is considered one of the best in the world? According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, the Israeli military was not prepared for an attack with rather simple means. Israel was caught unprepared for the fact that the border fence, which is about six meters high, could be bulldozed from the Gaza Strip. In the recent past, the Israeli military has tended to rely on technology and reduce ground troops. The army had been "preparing for the wrong war," the paper quoted Avi Jager of the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism in Israel as saying.
Professor Kobi Michael of the Israeli Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) said: "I have no idea how this colossal failure could have happened." The trust of the population has been permanently damaged. "I'm sure that some heads will roll in Israel in the medium term."
Who is Hamas?
Hamas (abbreviation for "Islamic Resistance Movement") was founded in the wake of the Palestinian uprising Intifada at the end of 1987. Its members had repeatedly kidnapped Israeli soldiers and sent suicide bombers into Israeli cities. The organization has its roots in the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood. Its founder was Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, who was also the spiritual leader of Hamas until he was killed in a targeted Israeli airstrike in March 2004.
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In 2006, Hamas won the parliamentary elections, and the following year it seized sole control of the Gaza Strip by force. Since then, it has also been responsible for supplying the civilian population in the coastal strip.
In its charter, Hamas calls for the destruction of the State of Israel and the forcible establishment of an Islamic state of Palestine from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea. This is the overarching goal of the group, which is classified as a terrorist organization by the EU, the US and Israel.
What is Hamas' purpose in this bloody terrorist attack?
Hamas' immediate goals are the lifting of the years-long blockade of the Gaza Strip and the release of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. According to the human rights organization Betselem, there are currently around 4500,183 Palestinians in Israeli jails, including 100 from the Gaza Strip. Hamas' goal is presumably to free as many prisoners as possible in exchange for more than <> hostages taken to the Palestinian territory, including foreign citizens.
The overarching goal, however, remains Israel's destruction, says Professor Kobi Michael of the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) in Tel Aviv. "They have believed for years that they can bring about salvation through armed struggle. Their goal is to sow fear among the population and mistrust between civil society and the military."
Concern about regional conflagration
The Hamas leadership also believes that its actions can encourage other elements, such as the Shiite militia Hezbollah in Lebanon and Iran. Their goal, he said, is to push Israel into a war on multiple fronts to bring about the destruction of the Jewish state.
With reports of Israel's rapprochement with Saudi Arabia under U.S. mediation, many Palestinians have recently felt that their national cause has been sidelined. From the point of view of Hamas, the Lebanese Hezbollah militia and its main supporter, Tehran, such an alliance would be to their detriment. Iran denies involvement in the terrorist attack in Israel, although a Hamas spokesman openly confirmed it.
Hamas fired rockets into Israel from the Gaza Strip on October 7. © Hatem Moussa/AP/dpa
There are now concerns that the conflict could escalate into a regional conflagration amid deadly skirmishes on Israel's northern border. The fact that the US is deploying an aircraft carrier, warships and several fighter jets to the eastern Mediterranean near Israel is seen as a clear warning signal to the Hezbollah-Iran axis to stay out of the conflict.
Surprised by their own success
Hamas itself was surprised by the "success" of its large-scale attack, Michael says. A senior Hamas leader said on Tuesday: "We have proven that you can outwit this army and show its weakness." He cited Israel's actions in the occupied West Bank and on the Temple Mount (Haram al-Sharif) in Jerusalem, which is sacred to Jews and Muslims, as the reason for the attack.
A burned-out car stands in front of a damaged house in Ashkelon in southern Israel after a Hamas rocket attack. © Ilia Yefimovich/dpa
The Palestinians accuse the right-wing religious government of Benjamin Netanyahu of wanting to extend Israel's control over the sanctuary. In addition, far-right ministers in the government are campaigning for further settlement of the West Bank. "That's why the resistance fought back," the Hamas representative said.
Horrific details about the massacre
Days after the massacre of Israeli civilians in border towns and at a music festival, more and more gruesome details about the killings are coming to light. Army spokesman Daniel Hagari on Tuesday described Hamas as an "ISIS-like unit." It had "put itself on the list of the most murderous and barbaric organizations in history."
An Israeli soldier stands next to the bodies of Israelis killed by Hamas fighters in Sderot. © Tsafrir Abayov/AP/dpa
It is precisely the supposed success of Hamas that will ultimately prove counterproductive, "because it will bring a great catastrophe upon them," says Michael.
Can Israel destroy Hamas?
Israel now has no choice but to completely destroy the organization's military capabilities, the expert says. In principle, this is also possible.
The political leadership must also be "mercilessly crushed" in the operation, he says. "You have to kill the entire Hamas leadership and destroy all the command centers." "We can't destroy the idea of Hamas, but we can destroy the infrastructure."
A risky Israeli ground offensive in the densely populated Palestinian territory would probably be necessary, but this could remain limited. "You don't have to control every lane." dpa