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Study Says Hamas Deceived Israel Before October 7 Attack
A study says Hamas tried to make Israeli officials think things in Gaza were calm before the October 7 attack.
It says Hamas used secret talks and false information to strengthen that impression.
The study also says Hamas recruited people who had been part of an Israeli spying network to act as double agents.
A Hamas military figure quoted in the study said Israel thought conditions were normal until the night before the attack.
The study’s claims about double agents have not been independently proven.
Hamas officials have separately said the group used deception before the attack.
Israel’s Shin Bet also found that reports described normal Hamas activity before the attack, despite warning signs.
A Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs study says Hamas worked to make Israel believe Gaza was stable.
The study says Hamas pursued secret negotiations to suggest it sought peace and economic stability.
It reports that Hamas used double agents to provide Israel’s Shin Bet with false information, including shortly before the attack.
A Hamas military figure cited in the study said Israel was misled about conditions in Gaza through the evening of October 6.
The double-agent claims have not been independently established, though Hamas officials have acknowledged using deception.
- Who
- Hamas and Israeli intelligence service Shin Bet; the claims are described in a study by the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs.
- What
- The study alleges Hamas used deception, secret negotiations, and double agents to obscure preparations for the October 7 attack.
- Where
- Gaza and Israel.
- When
- The strategy was conceived in early 2022; the alleged deception continued through October 6, before the October 7 attack. The study was published on a Wednesday.
- Why
- According to the study, Hamas sought to create the impression that it wanted peace and economic stability and that Israeli policy was working.
Study and Hamas statements
Verification caveat
Use of double agents
Study and Hamas statements
The JCFA study says Hamas recruited members of an Israeli espionage network and used double agents to feed Shin Bet false information.
Verification caveat
The report says this specific double-agent claim has not been independently established.
Israeli intelligence picture before the attack
Study and Hamas statements
The study says Israel was led to believe conditions in Gaza were normal through the evening of October 6.
Verification caveat
The article notes that Shin Bet’s investigation also described reports of normal Hamas activity, while acknowledging indications that an attack could occur.
Key facts
- Study publisher
- Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs (JCFA)
- Strategy timeline
- The study says the strategy was conceived in early 2022.
- Alleged deception period
- The study says Israeli intelligence believed conditions in Gaza were normal through the evening of October 6.
- Israeli intelligence service
- Shin Bet (Israel Security Service)
- Alleged espionage network discovery
- A Hamas military figure cited by the study said the group identified a major Israeli espionage network in Gaza as early as 2017.
- Independent verification
- The claim that Hamas activated double agents to deceive Shin Bet has not been independently established.
- Hamas acknowledgment
- In a late-2023 interview, senior Hamas official Khaled Mashal said Hamas used strategic and tactical deception ahead of October 7.
Sources
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