HAMAS (Islamic Resistance Movement)
Description
HAMAS, which includes military and political wings, was formed by the late Sheik Ahmad Yasinat at the onset of the first Palestinian uprising or Intifadah in late 1987, as an outgrowth of the Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood. The armed element, called the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, conducts anti-Israeli attacks, including suicide bombings against civilian targets inside Israel. Social-political elements engage in "Dawa" or ministry activities, which include running charities and schools, fund-raising and political activities. A Shura council based in Damascus, Syria, sets overall policy. Since winning Palestinian Authority (PA) elections in 2006, HAMAS has taken control of significant PA ministries, including the Ministry of Interior. HAMAS formed an expanded, overt militia called the Executive Force, subordinate to the Ministry.
Leadership and Structure
Hamas appears to include political and military wings, but distinctions between the two are not fully clear. Hamas’ leadership structure is more difficult to discern. Various sources describe the leaders as follows:
Khaled Mishal: Mishal was born in the West Bank in 1956 and studied physics at Kuwait University, where he led the Islamic Palestinian student movement. Mishal is considered the leader of Hamas and resides in Damascus, Syria, where he has lived in exile since the early 1990s.
Musa Abu-Marzuq: Born in Gaza in 1951, Marzuq received a doctorate in industrial engineering in the United States. He serves as Hamas’ deputy political leader, and is based in Syria. He lived in the United States and Jordan for many years and was expelled from both countries. In 2004, a U.S. court indicted him in absentia for coordinating and financing Hamas activities.
Mahmoud al-Zahar: Born in Gaza, Zahar, studied medicine in Cairo and is a founding member of Hamas. Referred to as a “hardliner,” Zahar is to lead the Hamas faction in parliament.
Aziz Dweik: Dweik, an academic by profession, was born in 1948 and has a doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania. Dweik was deported to Lebanon in 1992 and served as spokesperson of the deportees. Dweik is slated to become Speaker of parliament.
Sheik Hassan Yousef: Yousef, in his fifties, has been the head of Hamas in the West Bank since 2001, and is currently in an Israeli prison. Considered by many experts to be pragmatic, Yousef’s participation in parliament, should he be released, may promote moderation within Hamas.
Sheik Muhammed Abu Tayr: Tayr, from Jerusalem, is in his fifties and garnered the second-most votes on Hamas’ national candidates list. Tayr spent 25 years in prison, is a former member of Fatah, and generally keeps a lower profile than other Hamas leaders. Though multiple reports claim Tayr supports sharia (Islamic law) influenced legislation, he does not appear to want to impose Islamic law.
Mohamed Deif: Deif, 40 years old, is from Gaza. Since 2002, he has been the Gaza commander of the military wing of Hamas. According to some, Deif’s mentor was Yahya Ayyash, a renowned Hamas bomb maker and head of the Qassam brigades until his assassination in late 1995. Deif’s exact whereabouts are unknown.
History
HAMAS (in Arabic, an acronym for "Harakat Al-Muqawama Al-Islamia" -- Islamic Resistance Movement -- and a word meaning courage and bravery) is a radical Islamic fundamentalist organization which became active in the early stages of the intifada, operating primarily in the Gaza District but also in Judea and Samaria. HAMAS is the strongest opposition group to the peace process, to the PLO, and remains a powerful player in Middle East politics.
HAMAS was formed in late 1987 as an outgrowth of the Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood. Hamas is a Sunni Islamic organization which was established at the beginning of the first Intifada, (December 1987) by Sheikh Ahmed Yassin. Hamas is dedicated to the establishment of an Islamic Palestinian State that encompasses Israel, the West Bank and Gaza. The Hamas believes in the establishment of an Islamic theocracy over all the territory of the land of Israel, "from the Mediterranean Sea to the Jordan River". Paradoxically, the formation of Hamas was encouraged by the Israeli government, which saw the new group as a religious competitor to the generally secular Palestinian nationalist groups.
The Hamas was established from cells of the Muslim Brotherhood organization that had already been active in the territories. The Muslim Brotherhood was founded in 1928 to replace secular rulers with an Islamic society. The Muslim Brotherhood is recognized as a social movement, and constitutes a convenient arena for the activities of individuals and groups deriving extreme religious legitimacy from the organization. The Muslim Brotherhood does not only provide ideological and logistical support for the Hamas; The Egyptian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood was a significant influence behind the formation of the Hamas organization.
HAMAS is loosely structured, with some elements working openly through mosques and social service institutions to recruit members, raise money, organize activities, and distribute propaganda. Militant elements of HAMAS, operating clandestinely, have advocated and used violence to advance their goals. HAMAS's strength is concentrated in the Gaza Strip and in a few areas of the West Bank. The situation most especially in Gaza has allowed HAMAS to become deeply rooted, most especially among refugees. It also has engaged in peaceful political activity, such as running candidates in West Bank Chamber of Commerce elections.
The Gaza Strip is the main stronghold of Hamas. HAMAS includes an unknown number of hardcore members and tens of thousands of supporters and sympathizers -- primarily in the occupied territories. In August 1999, Jordanian authorities closed the group's Political Bureau offices in Amman, arrested its leaders, and prohibited the group from operating on Jordanian territory. Hamas enjoys the solid grassroots support of about one-third of the Palestinian population. They are the supporters of religious orientation. Hamas has a lot of credibility among ordinary Palestinians. Hamas also gets support because of its social, medical and education programs in Palestinian areas.
For years, Hamas was a fringe organization, popular mainly for its social and educational work, especially in poor neighborhoods. But that has changed. A Palestinian public-opinion poll indicates Hamas had the support of 30-percent of the Palestinian population in Gaza and the West Bank. It was increasingly seen as a rival to Yasser Arafat's mainstream Fatah movement.
The Hamas has conducted social activity in mosques that mainly serve the Palestinian immigrant population. These Palestinians are potential recruits for the organization (particularly Palestinian students) who are expected to return later on to the territories. As the terrorist attack at Mike's Place in Tel Aviv shows, the mosques can be used to recruit Muslim operatives (not just Palestinians) to carry out terrorist attacks in Israel.
The Hamas is assisted by other terrorist organizations overseas (with an emphasis on Al Qaida and the Hizbullah), with the aim of advancing strategic objectives. The ties between these parties are based upon personal contacts and their identification with Islam, and, particularly, the principle of Jihad. The links between these groups are also expressed through mutual operational assistance, thereby advancing the strategic goals of the Hamas organization.
In 2004 Peter Hansen, Commissioner General of UNRWA, admitted, "I am sure that there are Hamas members on the UNRWA payroll and I don’t see that as a crime." UNRWA has long been accused of looking the other way or accepting no responsibility when charges arise that Palestinian terrorists operate in its refugee camps. Not only have many of the suicide bombers of Hamas and other Palestinian terror organizations come from UNRWA refugee camps, but students in UNRWA schools have received a steady diet of hatred and anti-Semitism in their textbooks.
In February of 2005, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas convinced Hamas to agree to an informal temporary cease-fire with Israel. The cease-fire brought a great reduction in the amount of violence in the region. Hamas honored the cease-fire, but declared that they would not renew the truce when it expired at the end of 2005. Hamas said that Israel carried out targeted assassinations, arrests and airstrikes in violation of the truce.
Political Role
On January 26, 2006, Hamas won a stunning victory in the Palestinian parliamentary elections that gave it a decisive majority in the legislature. Election officials say Hamas won 76 of the 132 seats in parliament, while the Fatah party, which had dominated Palestinian politics for decades, secured only 43. By winning a significant majority in parliament, Hamas was in a strong position to oppose negotiations with Israel and support a greater role for Islam in the everyday life of Palestinians.
Immediately after the election, the Middle East Quartet (the United States, Russia, the European Union (EU), and the United Nations) indicated that assistance to the PA would only continue if Hamas renounced violence, recognized Israel, and accepted previous Israeli-Palestinian agreements, which Hamas refused to do. As a result, in early April 2006, the United States and the EU announced they were halting assistance to the Hamas-led PA government (humanitarian aid would continue to flow through international and non-governmental organizations). The EU has been the PA’s largest donor since it was created in 1996 under the Oslo peace accords. At the same time, Israel began withholding about $50 million in monthly tax and customs receipts that it collects for the PA. In 2005, international assistance and the Israeli-collected revenues together accounted for about two-thirds of PA revenues. In addition, the PA lost access to banking services and loans as banks around the world refused to deal with the fear of running afoul of U.S. anti-terrorism laws and being cut off from the U.S. banking system.
The resulting fiscal crisis left the Hamas-led government unable to pay wages regularly and deepened poverty levels in the Palestinian territories. The government was forced to rely on shrinking domestic tax revenues and cash that Hamas officials carried back from overseas. Press reports indicated that much of this cash emanated from Iran. By the end of 2006, tensions in the West Bank and Gaza Strip were rising as living conditions deteriorated and PA employees, including members of the security forces, went unpaid for weeks or months. Armed supporters of Fatah and Hamas clashed repeatedly, trading accusations of blame, settling scores, and drifting into lawlessness. More than 100 Palestinians were killed in the violence.
After months of intermittent talks, on February 8, 2007, Fatah and Hamas signed an agreement to form a national unity government aimed at ending both the spasm of violence and the international aid embargo that followed the formation of the initial Hamas-led government. The accord was signed by PA President and Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas political leader Khalid Mish’al in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, after two days of talks under the auspices of Saudi King Abdullah. Under the agreement, Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas remained prime minister. In the new government, Hamas controled nine ministries and Fatah six, with independents and smaller parties heading the remainder. Among the independents are Finance Minister Salam Fayyad, an internationally respected economist, and Foreign Minister Ziad Abu Amr, a reformer and ally of President Mahmoud Abbas.
The marriage was short lived, however, as tesnsions between the rival Palestinian factions escalated. The new government was still unable to lift the economic embargo and living conditions continued to deteriorate. As each side jockeyed for position during the ensuing power struggle, fighting finally broke out in May. A series of cease fires could not stem the violence and by June turmoil had gripped the cities. The streets became the scenes of gruesom public executions and local government officials were forced to shut down businesses, schools, and public offices. As the situation worsened President Abbas sacked Prime Minister Haniyeh and dissolved the government on June 14, 2007. After he declared a state of emergency Abbas swore in a new cabinet under the leadership of Salam Fayyad on June 17, 2007. Ismail Haniyeh said he planned to ignore the decree issued by Abbas and would continue to operate as if his government were still in place; but the international community threw its support behind Abbas. In addition to receiving the backing of the Arab League and the European Union, both Israel and the United States announced that they were prepared to lift the financial and economic sanctions against the PA since a new government had been formed bereft of Hamas.
Activities
Prior to 2005, HAMAS conducted numerous anti-Israeli attacks including suicide bombings, rocket attacks, IED attacks, and shootings. The group curtailed terrorist attacks in February 2005 after agreeing to a temporary period of calm brokered by the PA, and ceased most violence after winning control of the PA legislature and cabinet in 2006. After HAMAS staged a June 25 attack on IDF soldiers near Kerem Shalom that resulted in two deaths and the abduction of Corporal Gilad Shalit, Israel took steps that severely limited the operation of the Rafah crossing. HAMAS maintained and expanded its military capabilities during this time. HAMAS has not directly targeted U.S. interests, although the group makes little or no effort to avoid targets frequented by foreigners.
Strength
HAMAS probably has several hundred members in its armed wing, the al-Qassam Brigades, along with its reported 6,000-man Executive Force and tens of thousands of supporters and sympathizers.
Location/Area of Operation
HAMAS has an operational presence in every major city within the Palestinian territories and has focused its anti-Israeli attacks on targets in those territories and Israel. The group retains a cadre of leaders and facilitators that conduct diplomatic, fundraising, and arms smuggling activities in Lebanon, Syria, and other states.
External Aid
Receives some funding, weapons and training from Iran. Also receives donations from Palestinian expatriates around the world and private benefactors in Arab states. Some fundraising and propaganda activity takes place in Western Europe and North America.
