Hamas confidential documents- Originally planned to join forces with Iran and Hezbollah to attack Israel, 1 reason to strike first

According to a report by The New York Times, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh once attempted to persuade Iran and Hezbollah to join in a cross-border attack against Israel, as revealed in confidential Hamas documents. The documents indicate that ahead of the planned attack on October 7 last year, Hamas postponed their action to gain support from these allies. Although Iran and Hezbollah eventually expressed willingness to cooperate, they requested more time to “deploy their environment.” Ultimately, worried about Israel’s advancing air defense systems, Hamas decided to proceed independently.

The Times notes that since 2021, Hamas has intentionally avoided significant confrontations with Israel to create the false impression that everything was secure for Israeli leaders. Initially, their assault was slated for fall 2022 and was referred to as the “big project,” but the timeline was delayed in hopes of securing Iranian and Hezbollah participation.

Furthermore, a January discovery by the Israeli military in Gaza of ten secret meeting records from Hamas indicates that a senior official met with Iranian commander Mohammed Said Izadi in July 2023, requesting help to target sensitive Israeli sites. Izadi reportedly stated that while Iran and Hezbollah could offer support, they would need more time to prepare.

Even with the backing of allies, Hamas ultimately chose to act on its own, driven by concerns over Israel’s new advanced air defense capabilities.

The documents also reveal that various factors influenced Hamas’s actions, including disrupting the normalization of relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia, Israel’s ongoing consolidation of its occupation in the West Bank, and efforts to exert greater control over the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.

In response to these assertions, Iran’s mission to the United Nations denied the claims and suggested the meeting notes cited by The New York Times were fabricated. In a statement to CNN, the Iranian officials specified that all decision-making and guidance during the operations were solely conducted by Hamas’s military wing based in Gaza, dismissing any links to Iran or Hezbollah as baseless.

A Hezbollah spokesman reiterated to CNN on the 12th that, as stated by the late leader Hassan Nasrallah, the group was not aware of Hamas’s attack plans.

The Israeli military has declined to comment, and neither Hamas nor Hezbollah have responded to requests for remarks.