Hamas's duplicity: The terrorist organization is playing games with us again

Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey condemned this week the continuation of Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip and determined that they constitute a violation of the agreement and harm efforts to implement the second phase. The announcement was published after Donald Trump announced a breakthrough on the path to disarming Hamas. The initial meaning is clear: even before an implementation mechanism was established, the mediators are presenting Israeli activity as a violation of agreements.

The 15-point roadmap shows that the gaps are still open: weapons, production sites, and warehouses will be transferred to the responsibility of the new Palestinian committee for managing Gaza, and not to Israel or a non-Palestinian entity. Demilitarization depends on early Israeli steps; the process is supposed to begin only after the cessation of military activity, the entry of the Palestinian committee, and the deployment of the international stabilization force.

Withdrawal and handling of weapons are linked to each other. The roadmap links the disabling of weapons to a gradual Israeli withdrawal — a parallel process in which every progress is accompanied by further withdrawal. The stabilization force will not disarm Hamas itself — the force will monitor the ceasefire, train the police, and assist in protecting aid, but the practical responsibility for disarmament is transferred to a Palestinian body.

Hamas, for its part, stated that the transfer of weapons will begin only after Israel stops striking, withdraws from the territories it has captured, and expands aid.

Not a tactic — a strategy

Political pressure began before demilitarization: Hamas presented conditional consent, and the mediators are already demanding that Israel stop striking. The method behind this is "tahdia". Hamas is not required to present weapons that have been handed over or tunnels that have been destroyed; it is enough that it announces a willingness to enter a phased process for the center of gravity to shift to Israel, and for pressure to be directed at it. When it does not stop, it is presented as a violator of the agreement. When Hamas is in a corner, it signs agreements — which will be violated when the situation improves from its perspective.

This is the method known since the beginning of Islam: tahdia — "a temporary and limited cessation". In the 2005 Cairo Declaration, the factions committed to a limited "tahdia period", but emphasized the "right to resistance" — lowering the level of fighting without changing the goal. As Khaled Mashal said in 2008: tahdia is a tactic in managing the conflict whose goal is to achieve objectives when fighting is not useful.

When military pressure increases, Hamas turns to negotiations; when control is damaged, it relies on aid; when it struggles to protect infrastructure, it returns to civilian areas; and when a halt to strikes is required, it presents a willingness for an agreement and portrays Israel as the one obstructing it. Misery and international pressure are tools for buying time, maintaining control, rebuilding, and delegitimizing Israel.

This is prominent around hospitals and humanitarian zones in the Strip: civilian infrastructure is used simultaneously for hiding, command, and weapons storage. Political pressure prevents Israel from acting there and grants Hamas shelter and protection. The hostage deals proved how much Hamas maintained control and managed complex moves. It is a strategic player that exploits the mediators, the media, and aid.

Therefore, Israel must stop treating every event as a separate crisis: from Hamas's perspective, negotiations are the continuation of fighting by other means.

The author is a resident of Yated, a farmer, a leading member of the Gaza Envelope Forum, and responsible for the forum's security and intelligence sector.