Hamas’s original plan for October 7 went beyond a massacre in the Gaza border area and the taking of hundreds of hostages, but to continue its assault to the border with the West Bank, The Washington Post it reported on Sunday, citing Western and Middle Eastern security officials briefed on the evidence collected.
This information was obtained from numerous maps, notes, supplies and other written instructions found among the bodies of slain Hamas terrorists in the Gaza border area, as well as from interrogations of Hamas captives.
“We know from the interrogations that Hamas came with detailed plans for their attack, including which commander should rape which soldiers in different places,” explained Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. The Washington Post, although the quote has been removed from the original report.
Hamas planned to go much further into Israel on October 7
On October 7, Hamas terrorists executed a meticulously planned massive infiltration of Israel, under the cover of heavy rocket fire. There, they managed to wreak havoc in at least 22 Israeli towns and military outposts near the Gaza border throughout the day, killing around 1,200 Israelis and kidnapping hundreds of people back to Gaza as hostages.
The furthest that Hamas terrorists were able to infiltrate was the town of Ofakim in the western Negev, halfway between Gaza and the West Bank.
However, according to the Washington Post article, evidence suggests they were planning to go much further, hitting major cities and military bases, and may have ended up in the West Bank, where Hamas has allies in the form of many local armed Palestinian terror cells.
“If this had happened, it would have been a huge propaganda victory, a symbolic blow not only against Israel but also against the Palestinian Authority,” said a former US security official. The Washington Post under the condition of anonymity.
This also comes as Israel’s attention shifted away from Gaza and Hamas, especially after the latest round of fighting in 2021, Operation Guardians of the Wall – to the West Bank, which had seen a dramatic increase in violence and terrorism.
This, however, may have allowed Hamas to discreetly and methodically map out its plan over time, training terrorists and gathering intelligence in the utmost secrecy.
“They were deceiving Israel at a strategic level, using portable radios, ground networks in tunnels and other communications that we couldn’t hear, while using codes on the so-called open networks, which they knew we were listening in,” said the former deputy head of the Council. of Israel’s National Security, Eran Etzion The Washington Post. “They were creating an alternate reality.”
Furthermore, the report said that this would have come at a high cost, as Hamas knew the level of Israel’s response.
“They were very clear about what was going to happen in Gaza the next day,” a senior Israeli military official told the outlet. “They wanted to buy their place in history, a place in the history of jihad, at the cost of the lives of many people in Gaza.”
However, while Hamas might have expected this level of Israeli response, US involvement it may have been a surprise.
“An Israeli response? Yes, we expected it,” Ali Barakeh, a member of Hamas’ political leadership, told The Financial Times in late October. “But what we’re seeing now is the entry of the United States into the battle, and we hadn’t counted on that.”
Washington diverted many of its forces to the area amid Israel’s launch of Operation Swords of Iron, the latest war with Hamas.
Just one day after the Hamas massacre, the US sent an aircraft carrier strike group, with the world’s largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, closer to Israel. Later in the month, the US sent Lt.-Gen. James Glynn, a three-star Marine general, and other military officers helped Israel plan its ground offensive in the Gaza Strip.
At the time of writing, Israeli troops have made major gains in the northern Gaza Strip, claiming that Hamas has lost control of the area and surrounded Gaza City.
Efforts to free the remaining hostages and eliminate Hamas continue.
English 
Español de Venezuela