In the years leading up to Hamas' Oct. 7 invasion and massacre, the Iranian regime served as the terror group's main strategic supporter, supplying weapons, training, and hundreds of millions of dollars in funds.
This was revealed by new Hamas documents that were found by Israeli soldiers in the Gaza Strip, including letters written by senior commanders, according to a recent report by the Israeli Meir Amit Center, a non-governmental organization with ties to the Israeli intelligence community.
"The documents also provide new information on Iranian involvement in preparations for Hamas ahead of the October 7, 2023 attack, including the coordination with Hezbollah and the deployment of Hamas in the Lebanese arena."
The report noted that while the newly-discovered documents do not confirm the regime's claim of being unaware of the timing of Hamas' attack, they revealed that "Hamas coordinated with Iran for about two years in the preparation of a strategic operation against Israel, with the leaderships of Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran preparing both at the strategic and tactical level for a defining event against Israel."
The documents highlight the enormous scope of Iran's financial involvement in the Gaza Strip. One document dated July 30, 2020, signed by a deputy of Marwan Issa, the late second-in-command of Hamas' military wing, and addressed to former Gaza leader Yahya Sinwar, lists money transfers totaling $154 million between July 2014 and July 2020.
The documents also show that the regime regularly decreased or halted the money transfers during periods of political disagreements, using the funds as a pressure tool to influence the terror group.
For example, in 2022, Hamas renewed ties with Syria's Assad regime due to Iranian pressure to unite its "Axis of Resistance."
According to a letter sent to Sinwar and his deputy Khalil al-Hayya by Issa in December 2022, the terror group agreed with Iran that a special monthly budget of $7 million over the following year would be used to prepare for a major confrontation with Israel.
This document is also part of a lawsuit filed by families of American victims of the Oct. 7 attack in a U.S. Federal Court on Sunday, according to The Times of Israel.
The letter also detailed a smuggling operation conducted through Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen to supply Hamas with ammunition.
Hamas outlined methods for smuggling weapons from Yemen through a network of smugglers it apparently completely trusted, even suggesting the possibility of using a submarine for transport.
In addition to funding and weapons supply, Iran provided training to Hamas fighters. According to the documents, Hamas operated an elite "Shadow Unit" that was under the direct command of Sinwar and was sent to Iran for training. This included special training to operate Iranian-made drones, with the letters explicitly stating the special unit was preparing for major operations against Israel.
Another letter sent by Khaled Meshaal to Issa shows that Iran also stood behind Hamas' efforts to establish a military presence in Lebanon. The plan was for up to 10,000 Hamas operatives to be recruited in Lebanon and operate under instructions of Hezbollah's Radwan Force.
"Iran has been the main strategic supporter of Hamas since 2014," stated the report. "Senior Hamas officials also publicly thanked the regime in Tehran for the assistance with military means that helped to strike deep in Israel."
The report lists several examples of this, like Yahya Sinwar saying in May 2019 that Iran provided the "resistance" with the missiles that made it possible to strike the cities of Beersheva and Tel Aviv during shorter conflicts in 2012 and 2014.
After the "Guardian of the Walls" conflict in May 2021, Ismail Haniyeh, head of Hamas' political bureau, again thanked Iran for its support with weapons and money.
Alongside support for Hamas' military arm, the Iranian regime transferred funds and equipment to other terror organizations active in the Gaza Strip – Palestinian Islamic Jihad, in particular – and financed "civil, educational and cultural projects" in the enclave.
This included efforts to "Shiitize" the majority Sunni Gaza Strip, for example, by funding celebrations of the Iranian "Quds Day" feast or distributing materials celebrating the former Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani, the report stated.
Republished with permission from All Israel News
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