Hamas will not hesitate to start another war with Israel - analysis

• Published date: 27 September 2021
• Author: ANNA AHRONHEIM
• Publication title: Jerusalem Post, The: Web Edition Articles (Israel)

Based in the Gaza Strip, Hamas constantly attempts to carry out attacks in the West Bank. But this was on a different level.

The raids, which took place in five different locations in the West Bank, were aimed at dismantling a large decentralized Hamas terror infrastructure that was planning to carry out imminent terror attacks there and in Israel.

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The attacks were reminiscent of the ones carried out by Hamas and other Palestinian terror groups during the Second Intifada, complete with bombings and the kidnappings of Israeli soldiers and civilians.

According to the military, Israel's defense establishment had been following the cell closely and acted when the Shin Bet internal security agency received intelligence that they were about to follow through with their plans.

Over 20 operatives belonging to the cell were arrested by security forces and five weapons were seized. Additional cell members and their weapons are still believed to be on the loose, with Israel on their trail.

Building the infrastructure's capabilities must have taken several months, if not more than a year. It meant funneling funds to purchase the weapons and carrying out training needed for the attacks.

The funds could have come from the group in Gaza or from Turkey, which the group's number two, Saleh Arouri, calls home.

The deputy head of Hamas and one of the founders of its al-Qassam Brigades military wing, Arouri is responsible for several bloody terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians and soldiers, including the 2014 kidnapping and murder of three Israeli teenagers in the West Bank that triggered Operation Protective Edge.

It would not be surprising if Arouri was also behind the cell that was targeted by Israel yesterday.

And it is not hard to imagine that had the cell been successful in carrying out its plans, Israel could have found itself in another deadly conflict with the terror group, both in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

Since Operation Guardian of the Walls and the cancellation of the Palestinian Authority elections, Hamas and Fatah have been fighting for dominance. And with armed struggle gaining support following the May conflict, terrorists are feeling more confident to engage Israeli forces.

Hamas has a...