The thousands of Hamas terrorists who took to the streets of Gaza at the outset of the recent ceasefire with Israel was an overt show of force to prove they're still in control and will be a force to be dealt with when talks begin about the future of the Gaza Strip, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.
Israel's military estimated that it has killed about 17,000 Hamas terrorists of the 30,000 that were assembled at the start of the war, including leader Yahya Sinwar; Hamas does not divulge how many fighters it has lost in the 15-month war.
However, Hamas has been replenishing its ranks under Sinwar's younger brother, Mohammed, according to the Journal, showing that Israel is not close to meeting its goal of eradicating Hamas.
"The Hamas presence on the ground armed is a slap in the face to the Israeli government and army," Gershon Baskin, a former Israeli hostage negotiator who is now Middle East director for International Communities Organization, told the Journal. "It highlights that Israel's goals for the war were never achievable."
Another expert said that Hamas flooding the streets when the first three hostages were turned over to the Red Cross — gun-toting fighters stood on top of the Red Cross vehicles — on Sunday was a message to Israel, the U.S., and the international community.
"The message is that Hamas is 'the day after' for the war," Ibrahim Madhoun, an analyst close to Hamas based in Turkey, told The New York Times. "They're conveying that Hamas must be a part of any future arrangements, or at least, be coordinated with."
The 42-day truce will see 33 hostages in all be returned to Israel in exchange for 1,900 Palestinians from Israeli prisons. However, Israel has said that a permanent end to the war will only happen if Hamas is eradicated or abdicates power in Gaza.
"There is no future of peace, stability and security for both sides if Hamas stays in power," Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar said Sunday.