Senior Hamas officials have sent Israel an unusually blunt and direct message, warning that the terrorist organization is prepared to carry out another attack similar to the October 7, 2023, massacre and could strike wherever the opportunity arises — inside Israel, in Judea and Samaria and abroad.
The message was delivered to U.N. humanitarian coordinator Dr. Ramiz Alakbarov by senior Hamas officials who met with him last week at his office in the Gaza Strip and asked him to convey the warning to Israel.
Gaza, three years after the massacre
(Photo: Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
The Hamas officials told Alakbarov that Israeli military operations in Gaza, the shifting of the Yellow Line — the boundary marking Israeli military positions in the Strip — and the Palestinian Authority's cancellation of elections were causing Hamas to lose control on the ground. They made clear that they were unwilling to accept the continuation of this situation.
Alakbarov met Wednesday with Maj. Gen. Yoram Halevy, Israel's coordinator of government activities in the territories (COGAT), and relayed the message from Hamas leaders. Israeli officials described it as an extraordinary threat, unprecedented in its bluntness and directness. A document detailing the Hamas leadership's threats against Israel was urgently forwarded to the country's political and security leadership.
The remarks reflect the mounting pressure on Hamas as Israel has recently intensified its military campaign, carrying out a series of targeted killings of members of Hamas' elite Nukhba force and senior operatives in Gaza. At the same time, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has canceled the Palestinian Authority's elections that had been scheduled for November 28.
Hamas has been instructed by the Board of Peace and mediators to disarm, but Israeli officials believe the organization will refuse and instead resort to delaying tactics to buy time. Meanwhile, Israel continues to refuse to allow the technocratic committee or the Palestinian police force to enter Gaza.
Behind the scenes, Hamas is also facing a severe financial crisis. The terrorist organization needs approximately 90 million shekels ($29 million) a month simply to continue paying its operatives.
According to Israeli security estimates, Hamas has approximately 30,000 personnel across the Gaza Strip, ranging from administrative staff and low-level operatives to members of its military wing. Each receives about 3,000 shekels ($970) a month. Hamas, meanwhile, blames Israel for its financial difficulties.