What is the Significance of Hamas’s Al-Aqsa Flood Operation?
The timing of the operation, which coincided with the Sabbath, created a shock factor that made it difficult for the Israeli forces to react immediately.
Palestinian groups destroy an Israeli tank at the Gaza border, 07.10.2023. Photo by Anadolu Images
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amas’s Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, as the name suggests, was motivated by a central focus on the Al-Aqsa Mosque and Israeli aggression against the holy sites. The aim of the operation is to put an end to the 15-year blockade of Gaza and the related status quo in the Palestinian arena. It can be said that Hamas has achieved this goal at a tactical level in a short period of time. This operation has shaken global public opinion and forced it to take a position.
Although the operation carried out by Hamas’s armed wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, has been hyperbolically described as “Israel’s 9/11,” it would be more accurate to characterize the al-Aqsa Flood as a successful deception operation in which Hamas skillfully managed to conceal its military plans by convincing Israel that it no longer wanted war.
Hamas meticulously continued its preparations for this operation while Israel, with an unexpected naiveté, thought that it was keeping Hamas under its control. It has even been claimed that during the preparation process, Hamas deliberately reduced the tempo and frequency of its actions against Israel. Military experts have claimed that the operation was the most surprising attack since the Yom Kippur War with some describing it as an unprecedented intelligence maneuver.
Why was Israel taken by surprise?
The timing of the operation, which coincided with the Sabbath, the Jewish day of worship and rest, created a shock factor that made it difficult for the Israeli forces to react immediately. Moreover, infiltration from multiple points (air, land, and sea) took the Israeli defense by surprise.
Hamas decided on the details of the operation with a very limited group of people in order to prevent leaks from within its ranks. Some analyses have also pointed out that recently Israel shifted its focus on the steps to be taken to normalize relations with Saudi Arabia and away from Hamas.
An analysis of the tactical phases of the operation reveals that as the rockets launched from Gaza caused surprise, infiltrations were carried out with motorized parachutes and hang gliders in the shadow of the rockets. The initial infiltrating elements and elite units of Hamas were seen fortifying area control and security which facilitated attacks on the concrete barriers reinforced with electronic systems. This allowed buldozers, motorcycles, and land vehicles to breach the barrier system, enabling more elements to infiltrate.
Drones carrying improvised explosive devices (IEDs) disabled the electro-optical systems of the Israeli watchtowers. At the same time, the communication line with the Israeli army headquarters was disrupted, limiting the ability to respond to the attack immediately.
The kidnapping of Israeli prisoners into Gaza will provide Hamas with political leverage to increase its bargaining power in future prisoners’ exchange.
Finally, it is argued that the Israeli army made a strategic mistake in deploying its troops mainly in the West Bank, which was one of the factors that facilitated the execution of this operation.
The Palestinian issue and the changed trajectory of Saudi-Israeli normalization
Operation Al-Aqsa Flood can be seen as one with historical depth. It ushers in a new phase in the Gaza theater, which was last mobilized in May 2021. Hamas and Islamic Jihad are significant players in the Palestinian cause, providing alternative perspectives and choices in the ongoing political process in the West Bank.
The differentiation in the style of action reflects the differences in approach and strategy of the post-Intifada generation. Following the conclusion of the current escalation, the Palestinian issue will continue to exist, but there may be a clash between the new generation’s change of strategy and the older generation’s negotiating style. It appears that the Palestinian issue is undergoing a fundamental and radical rupture in relation to Israel.
The normalization process between Saudi Arabia and Israel will lose its public nature, but communication will continue. The relations between the two countries are structured in a way that transcends the Palestinian component. But at the end of the day, the respective political elites will take into account that Palestine is a geography that is close to the heart of every Arab and Muslim. The current escalation also holds the threat of a spillover effect across the region, possibly to Syria, Lebanon, and Iran.
Time will tell whether the strategic consequences of the operation will turn out as Hamas planned. As the current violence continues to escalate, it can be said that a new level has been reached in the Israeli-Palestinian tension and the fuse of a spiral of violence has been ignited.
