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The strike against Israel can radicalize political Islam
Both Hamas and Islamic Jihad's ultimate objective is to lionize political Islam over and again to enlist the support of the whole Muslim world to root for them.
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This long exposure picture taken from southern Israel near the border with the Gaza Strip shows explosions in the Palestinian territory during Israeli strikes as battles resumed between Israel and Hamas militants on Dec. 2, 2023. Israel and Hamas brushed off international calls to renew an expired truce on Dec. 2 as air strikes pounded militant targets in Gaza and Palestinian groups launched volleys of rockets. (AFP/John MacDougall)
"When every problem is a nail, every solution would be a hammer," affirmed Robert Johansen, a leading professor at the University of Notre Dame, who specializes in peace and conflict studies.
The problem with Hamas and Israel is that both see each other as a nail. A hard one. Evidently, both try to pummel each other into pulp. Their relationship is zero-sum. At least this is the case with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
About 75 to 76 percent of Israelis want the PM to resign. As and when the conflict in Gaza ends, perhaps 99 percent of them want him to resign immediately
To Israel, Hamas' counterparts include state and sub-state agents. Namely Iran, Hezbollah, the Houthis and Islamic Jihad. However, if Tel Aviv were given a bigger remit to decide who are the "other" friends of Hamas, the list could include Qatar too.
After all, over the last decade, Doha has supported the Palestinians in Gaza almost without fail, with more than US$1 billion expended in more than a decade.
What is less known is the fact that some of Hamas' political leadership could not have been based in Qatar had it not been for the request of the United States to keep Hamas a viable platform for any contingency.
As for Hamas, its enemy is not just Israel but anyone who shows even the slightest degree of inclination to normalize its relationship with Israel.
