Hamas’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... Read more on Politics Today: What is the Significance of Hamas’s Al-Aqsa Flood Operation? [Politics Today, October 12, 2023]