Hamas is a Palestinian political and military organization that operates primarily in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. It was founded in 1987 and is an acronym for “Harakat al-Muqawama al-Islamiyya,” which translates to the “Islamic Resistance Movement” in English. Hamas is considered a terrorist organization by several countries, including the United States, Israel, Canada, and the European Union, due to its history of armed conflict and its refusal to recognize Israel’s right to exist. Hamas has both political and militant wings, and it controls the Gaza Strip, where it governs as an Islamist political entity. It has done so exclusively since a brutal coup in 2007 against the Palestinian Authority (PA). The group’s Charter calls for the establishment of a Palestinian state, including the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem, the destruction of Israel, the killing of Jews, and it rejects any recognition of Israel.
In the last 16 years, Hamas has turned Gaza into a launching pad for terror attacks against Israel. After Israel built a fence around the territory, Hamas began launching rockets which became increasingly sophisticated. They attacked with drones, and sent “fire-balloons”, trying to burn Israeli crops. They have tried whatever they can to attack Israel, and indiscriminately attack Israeli civilian centres, which ultimately culminated in their most successful terror attack on October 7, 2023. During this attack, over 200 Israelis were kidnapped and taken hostage to Gaza, over 4,000 Israelis were injured, and over 1,400 were brutally raped, murdered, and burned alive.
Though Hamas is a threat to Israel, and Israel has set about trying to dismantle the group, Hamas is also clearly a threat to the Palestinians living in Gaza, who no doubt deserve better from their government. Hamas receives their funding primarily from Iran, as they are very much an Iranian terror proxy.
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