What’s happening:
Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) operating in Gaza have uncovered a significant hoard of confidential documents belonging to the Hamas organization, including a manual for handling hostages, a detailed rocket launch schedule, and sensitive information regarding IDF bases.
Why it matters:
This discovery provides a rare glimpse into the inner workings of Hamas, revealing their level of organization, military tactics, and intelligence gathering efforts. The confiscated materials, including maps, operational codes, and instructional documents, are a testament to the complexity and planning invested in Hamas’s military strategies against Israel.
The details:
The IDF located this intelligence trove after a military confrontation, with some documents found on the bodies of terrorists. The 65 million documents offer insights into Hamas’s combat units, targeting strategies for rocket attacks, and detailed countermeasures against the IDF campaign. Moreover, they involve instructions on harvesting organs from captured Israeli soldiers.
Bigger picture:
This significant intelligence find is a boost for the IDF, shedding light on the previously opaque operations of Hamas. This could lead to new strategies to counter threats and a better understanding of the organization’s military capacity. Hamas’s organization appears more profound and complex than previously thought, with plans for various combat scenarios and contingency measures in place. The IDF’s Military Intelligence Directorate is now tasked with analyzing this influx of data to preempt future threats.
By the numbers:
Hamas’s Gaza City division alone reportedly includes approximately 10,000 armed operatives. The organization is estimated to have around 30,000 armed military operatives, but IDF reports suggest only about a third have been neutralized thus far.
Bottom line:
The substantial stash of documents and maps now in IDF’s possession could provide critical insights that might alter the course of future interactions between Israel and Hamas, possibly enhancing Israel’s security and preparedness.
This story was first published on ynetnews.com.