The Hamas Attack
According to news outlet Globe, Hamas planned its attack on Israel in multiple stages. The first one involved launching a surprise attack on settlements near the Gaza-Israel border. Per Globe, this stage was executed after Hamas gathered intelligence for close to two years. Hamas believed the assault would find the Israeli government unprepared, considering that it was dealing with controversial judicial reforms.
Due to the Israel Defence Forces’ unpreparedness, the first stage of the Hamas attack was largely successful. The terror group was able to break into the homes of Israelis living near the Gaza border and brutally murdered them while taking some hostage.
However, the second stage of the attack failed. Hamas had hoped that it would recreate the Youm Kippur War with the help of West Bank-based Palestinians and Israel’s Arabs, who never joined the war. It is believed that the Palestinian Authority helped the Israeli military stop attacks that were to be launched from the West Bank.
The Palestinian Authority has never forgotten the coup in Gaza executed by Hamas back in 2007. At the time, the terror group threw Palestinian Authority officials from the top of tall buildings and killed some while their families watched.
Did Iran Betray Hamas?
Another reason that led to the failure of the second stage of Hamas’ attack was the lack of support from Iran. It appears that Iran had promised to let terror group Hezbollah assist Hamas in executing the second stage of its attack. However, the fear of war erupting in Iran made the Islamic State back away.
Hamas is now fighting against Israel alone, with only Qatar being its political and economic patron. Over the past few days, the Arabic State has been negotiating with the terror group to free foreign hostages as pressure from Western countries continues to mount on Qatar.
Qatar Wants Israel to Cease Fire
Qatar’s leadership, on the other hand, hopes that the terrifying images shared by its TV station, Al-Jazeera, will push more people across the world to urge Israel to stop attacks on Gaza. Although unconfirmed, a Hamas-operated Health Ministry said on Tuesday that airstrikes launched by the Israeli military had killed over 4,800 Palestinians.
