The Palestinian Islamic Jihad

Hamas in Lebanon, Based on Documents Brought Back by the IDF from the Gaza Strip

Hamas documents seized by the IDF in the Gaza Strip showed that the idea of establishing a military infrastructure in Lebanon was first raised around 2012; The documents also described how senior Hamas leaders led by Yahya al-Sinwar, encouraged by the sense of "victory" in Operation "Guardian of the Walls" in May 2021, worked with Hezbollah and Iran to establish a large military infrastructure for the movement in Lebanon that would form a fundamental part of the decisive campaign against Israel that began on October 7, 2023; according to the documents, internal power struggles took place within Hamas and against Iran and Hezbollah over control of the military infrastructure in Lebanon; Hamas' military wing in Lebanon participated in the campaign that Hezbollah launched against Israel on October 8, 2023, as "support" in the Gaza Strip and claimed responsibility for 13 attacks on the north of Israel until the ceasefire in November 2024. More than twenty commanders and operatives were thwarted in Israeli attacks during the campaign and after the ceasefire.
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Spotlight on Terrorism and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (July 28 – August 3, 2026)

The American president and the Board of Peace announced agreement on the road map for the second phase of the ceasefire, along with the IDF's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip; Hamas claimed it had made "concessions" to end the aggression but would continue its "political and national activities" to "liberate all Palestinian land from the occupation on all fronts"; IDF forces continued operations in the Yellow Line area and other parts of the Gaza Strip, destroying weapons depots, and eliminating operatives from Hamas and the other terrorist organizations, including operatives involved in the atrocities of the October 7, 2023 invasion and massacre; Hamas' new political bureau chairman, Khalil al-Hayya, met with the Turkish foreign minister and spoke with the prime minister of Qatar; Israeli security forces continued extensive counterterrorism operations in Judea and Samaria, detaining more than 200 wanted individuals and suspects and seizing weapons and other military equipment; The PLO established a center to monitor, and document alleged Israeli violations for use in proceedings before international legal institutions and in academic and journalistic research.
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Agreement for Collecting Weapons from Hamas and the Other Armed Organizations in the Gaza Strip – Significance and Reactions

The American president and the Board of Peace announced they had reached an agreement with Hamas on a road map for implementing the second phase of the ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip; Hamas and the armed factions will transfer their heavy weapons, weapons depots, production facilities and tunnels to the responsibility of the Palestinian administration committee, which will store and supervise them; A senior Hamas figure claimed they had been "flexible", but added that the movement would continue to work to "liberate" the land from the "occupation" on all fronts; In The Amit Terrorism and Intelligence Research Institute assessment, the new agreement is not sufficiently clear and, based on what has been published so far, does not ensure the disarmament of Hamas and the other Palestinian armed factions; The framework also does not determine the fate of the commanders of the military wings and other terrorist operatives; The agreement also imposes restrictions on the IDF's use of force and its ability to deal with immediate or emerging threats.
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Spotlight on Terrorism and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (July 21 – 28, 2026)

An IDF officer and an Israeli civilian were shot and killed following clashes between Israelis and Palestinians in the Palestinian village of Kafr Tal. The Palestinians reported four fatalities and settler retaliation. A senior Hamas figure praised the "resistance of the residents," while the Palestinian Authority called for international intervention; An Israeli civilian was stabbed by two Hamas terrorists near Itamar, and an IDF soldier was stabbed by a Palestinian police officer in northern Samaria. Israeli security forces conducted extensive counterterrorism operations in Judea and Samaria; IDF forces continued operations in the Yellow Line and other parts of the Gaza Strip, destroying weapons depots and a tunnel hundreds of meters long, and eliminating more than ten Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorists, including senior Hamas security operatives and terrorists involved in the atrocities of the October 7, 2023 invasion and massacre and who had held hostages. The IDF reported that 12 Palestinian football [soccer] players killed during the war had been terrorist operatives; Khalil al-Hayya delivered his first speech as head of the Hamas political bureau. He related to the continuation of the "resistance" while rejecting any compromise regarding "Palestine." He asked the leaders of the mediating countries to compel Israel to stop the "violations" of the ceasefire agreement. 
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Khalil al-Hayya Elected to Chair Hamas political bureau – Insights and Reactions

Khalil al-Hayya is the new chairman of Hamas after defeating Khaled Mashaal; Hamas declared that all members of the movement and its institutions stood behind al-Hayya, while Iran and the "resistance axis" praised his election as "a proof of the victory of the resistance"; Al-Hayya, a native of Gaza City, joined Hamas when it was established in 1987 and was chairman of the movement's faction in the Palestinian National Council. He had been Yahya al-Sinwar's deputy in the Hamas political bureau in the Gaza Strip since 2017 and, following al-Sinwar's elimination, became Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip; Al-Hayya was a member of the Hamas delegations which conducted indirect negotiations with Israel over hostage deals and has headed the negotiating team since the outbreak of the war following the October 7, 2023 terrorist invasion and massacre. He also survived several attempts to kill him and four of his sons died in Israeli strikes; Al-Hayya is expected to continue al-Sinwar's ideological line, especially "resistance" and close relations with Iran. 
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Spotlight on Terrorism and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (July 14-21, 2026)

Hamas announced the election of Khalil al-Hayya as the new head of its political bureau, 21 months after the elimination of Yahya al-Sinwar; IDF forces continued operations within the Yellow Line and other parts of the Gaza Strip, destroying Hamas weapons depots and other terrorist facilities and assets and eliminating more than 16 Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorists, many involved in the atrocities of the October 7, 2023 invasion and massacre and who had held hostages; Another round of negotiations in Cairo on implementing the second phase of the ceasefire agreement ended without progress in disarming Hamas and the other terrorist armed organizations operating in the Gaza Strip; The date for the entry into Gaza of the Palestinian national committee for the administration of Gaza remains unknown. However, the committee continues to hold coordination meetings with the Board of Peace and the Palestinian Authority to discuss the provision of essential services and the beginning of reconstruction work; Hamas' security forces continue to identify "collaborators" with the militias and Israel amid the continuing targeting of "resistance fighters" in the Gaza Strip; Hamas and Palestinian Authority delegations arrived in Qatar to offer condolences to the emir on the death of his father; Israeli security forces continued extensive counterterrorism operations in Judea and Samaria, detaining dozens of wanted Palestinians and locating large quantities of weapons. An Israeli Arab was detained on suspicion of planning to assassinate an Israeli government minister.
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