[War & Business] Why Hamas Does Not Collapse Easily

A Religious, Political, and Military Organization
The Sole Reliance of Gaza Residents

The clashes between Israel and Hamas, which have captured global attention, are actually the fourth of their kind. Previously, wars between Israel and Hamas occurred periodically from 2008 to 2012, in 2014, and this year. Especially during the 2014 conflict, most of Hamas's senior commanders and many members were killed, leading to analyses that rebuilding the organization would be difficult.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

One major reason Israel was caught off guard by Hamas's surprise attack this time is that it had been complacent, believing that Hamas's reconstruction was impossible. In fact, Mohammed Deif, the commander of Hamas's Al-Qassam Brigades who is known to have led this surprise operation, was even rumored to have died in an Israeli airstrike.

The reason Hamas shows such tenacious vitality is that, unlike other Middle Eastern militias, it possesses several unique characteristics. In Korea, Hamas is usually interpreted as an "armed faction in the Palestinian Gaza Strip," but Hamas simultaneously holds three identities: a religious organization, a political party, and a military organization.

First, the word "Hamas" itself means "zeal" in Arabic and originated as an Islamic fundamentalist religious group devoted to the monotheistic Allah. It originally started as the Palestinian branch of the "Muslim Brotherhood," a religious movement that began in Egypt in 1938. It was initiated with the purpose of encouraging local residents to practice Islamic teachings and live righteously, but after decades of Middle Eastern wars, it became a completely different organization.

Along with its religious organization characteristics, another identity defining Hamas is that of a political party. Until the split from the Palestinian Authority (PA) in the West Bank in 2013, Hamas was one of the major political parties in Palestine. In the 2006 general election, it won 74 out of 132 seats, becoming a major party, but due to the subsequent Palestinian civil war, it now only represents the Gaza Strip politically.

The final identity, which is well known to us, is Hamas as a military organization. Currently, Hamas commands about 30,000 troops centered around the Al-Qassam Brigades, its military wing, and is the de facto militia controlling the Gaza Strip. Supported by Iran and Hezbollah, it produces its own rifles, rocket launchers, and combat vehicles. There are also suspicions that it has imported military and civil engineering technologies from Russia and North Korea.

As a result, for the residents of the Gaza Strip, Hamas is the only religious, political, and military organization they can rely on. Even if Israel mobilizes almost its entire military to carry out a scorched-earth operation in Gaza, and even if Hamas suffers devastating damage again, it will inevitably be rebuilt for this reason.

On the contrary, if the scorched-earth operation only fuels the resentment of Gaza residents, there is a risk that the Hamas organization could grow even larger. The residents of Gaza have already lost a lot due to conflicts with Israel. Factories and businesses repeatedly collapse due to periodic clashes, pushing the unemployment rate above 70%, and essential goods are always in short supply. Born in a massive prison where everything operates through smuggling due to Israel's border walls and naval blockade, the residents cannot help but harbor resentment.

The New York Times (NYT) also warns that the scorched-earth operation could lead to an even greater tragedy, quoting Gaza residents: "No matter how many people die in the clashes with Israel, if the Israeli army withdraws, Hamas will claim victory. We have nothing left to lose."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.