Hamas’s dilemma a year after Gaza war
TEL AVIV: A year after its devastating war with Israel, the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas is faced with a dilemma: to keep up the armed struggle or to lay low and reconstruct the Gaza Strip?
On May 10, 2021, weeks of clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinians in the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem culminated in all-out conflict.
What followed was 11 days of war that levelled parts of Gaza, killing 260 Palestinians, including many fighters and children. Fourteen died in Israel, including a soldier and two minors.
More than 1,000 buildings in Gaza were damaged or completely destroyed by the Israeli bombardment. But a year later, the reconstruction effort has barely taken off. Gaza City’s destroyed towers have not been rebuilt, and many roads are still in dire need of repair.
With no political solution on offer, Israel has been working to reduce tensions by easing economic restrictions on Gaza, where unemployment is running at around 50%. The number of permits for Gazans to work in Israel was increased to 12,000 in early April, with Israel promising 20,000 or more if the situation remains calm.
This offer poses a dilemma for Hamas, which in recent weeks has applauded six deadly anti-Israeli attacks and threatened a “big battle” if Israel continues its “aggression” against Palestinian worshippers in Al-Aqsa.
“The leadership in Gaza is trying to avoid further escalation and is encouraged by the decision of the current Israeli government to give more to Gaza as long as Gaza remains quiet,” said Ofer Zalzberg from the Herbert C Kelman Institute. “But there are also Hamas leaders outside Gaza, like Saleh al-Arouri, who believe that the strategy should not focus on Gaza.”