Declassified Hamas Letter Reveals Astonishing Religious Fanaticism Behind Oct. 7

A previously classified letter written by Hamas leaders on the morning of Oct. 7, 2023, has revealed the terror organization's detailed plans and motivations for the devastating attack on Israel, including their belief that the assault would lead to Israel's complete destruction.

This explosive intelligence document was recently reported in Hebrew-language Maariv news, following its discovery in a bunker used by Hamas military leadership after the elimination of Yahya Sinwar.

The lengthy personal letter was written by three top Hamas officials - Mohammed Deif, Yahya Sinwar and Marwan Issa - and addressed to Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and Said Izadi, commander of the "Palestine Corps" within Iran's Revolutionary Guard Quds Force.

Intelligence assessments indicate the letter was sent on the morning of Oct. 7, either as the Nukhba fighters began their assault on Israeli communities or shortly thereafter.

The document provides rare insight into the religious ideology driving Hamas, a Sunni Islamist organization founded in 1987 as an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood. Unlike secular Palestinian nationalist groups, Hamas views the conflict with Israel through an explicitly Islamic lens, seeing the destruction of the Jewish state as a religious obligation. The organization's charter calls for establishing an Islamic state in all of historic Palestine and rejects any permanent peace with Israel on theological grounds.

The document opens with prayers and Quranic verses before delivering a stunning revelation: Hamas leadership apologizes profusely to Nasrallah for not informing him in advance of the attack timing.

"We are sorry we did not update you," the letter states, explaining that the "intelligence capabilities of the enemy" forced them to maintain radio silence and avoid sharing the attack timeline with external partners.

"When you read these words, thousands of jihad fighters from the Al-Qassam Brigades will be attacking targets of the criminal Zionist occupation," the letter declares, detailing plans to breach the security fence, engage Israeli forces and capture both military and civilian positions while taking hostages.

The Hamas leaders justify their attack primarily through religious claims about Al-Aqsa Mosque, dedicating hundreds of words to alleged Israeli "crimes" at the holy site. They cite Jewish prayers at the Temple Mount, the presence of religious Jews in "priestly garments" and references to red heifers as evidence of Israeli intentions to "destroy Al-Aqsa and build the Temple."

"They no longer hide their intentions to destroy Al-Aqsa and build the Temple, and there is no greater proof of this than bringing red heifers," the letter states, referring to Jewish religious requirements for Temple service.

The document meticulously lists grievances including restrictions on Muslim worshippers, Israeli security operations in the West Bank cities of Jenin, Nablus and Hebron, and Israeli military actions in Syria and Iraq.

The letter reveals sophisticated strategic thinking, analyzing an Israeli Cabinet decision from Aug. 22, 2023, which Hamas interpreted as a shift toward confronting each member of the "resistance axis" separately rather than simultaneously. This analysis may explain Israeli intelligence concerns about "miscalculation" on the night of Oct. 7, as Israel sought to avoid appearing threatening to prevent Hamas from launching a preemptive attack.

"Instead of causing us to enter battle against him united to defend Al-Aqsa - an issue that would cause the entire region to explode in his face - he should retreat tactically to enter separate battles with each one individually," the Hamas leaders wrote.

The letter's most chilling sections reveal Hamas' messianic beliefs about destroying Israel and transforming the Middle East.

Predicting their attack will eliminate the Oslo Accords and topple Arab regimes normalizing relations with Israel, they write: "This battle, by God's grace, will change the equations and the rules that have become conventions. We will wash away and erase the stage of struggles and conflicts that have struck the region and realize, with God's permission, the greatest historical turning point in Islamic history."

The Hamas leaders urgently plead with Nasrallah to join the assault: "Today Al-Aqsa, its women and Murabitun activists are crying out to you, and Jenin, Hebron, and the blood of martyrs are calling you to mobilize."

The letter outlines specific military tactics Hamas hoped Hezbollah would employ: concentrated rocket bombardments to overwhelm Iron Dome systems, targeting airfields and military headquarters to paralyze Israeli air power, followed by large-scale ground attacks to seize territory and population centers.

"Concentrated bombing with rockets on the occupation's basic arteries in large barrages ... will disperse and destroy the Iron Dome," the letter details, predicting this would create "a state of shock and fear" leading to "rapid collapse."

The authors suggest a coordinated assault lasting two to three days would achieve their goals of completely destroying Israel.

Remarkably, the letter also reveals Hamas' propaganda strategy, instructing that public discourse should not speak of "eliminating or destroying Israel," but rather focus on international resolutions and political rhetoric to prevent other nations from fighting alongside Israel.

Twenty months after Oct. 7, the Middle East landscape has indeed been transformed, though not as Hamas envisioned. While the Oct. 7 massacre inflicted unprecedented casualties and trauma on Israel, the subsequent Israeli response has decimated Hamas leadership and capabilities.

Mohammed Deif, Yahya Sinwar, Marwan Issa, Hassan Nasrallah and Said Izadi - all recipients or authors of this letter - have been eliminated, along with hundreds of senior operatives across the "resistance axis."

The letter stands as a chilling testament to the religious fanaticism and strategic miscalculation that led Hamas to launch its devastating attack, ultimately achieving the opposite of its apocalyptic vision, while causing immense suffering on all sides

Originally published at WND News Center