After seizing control over the coastal enclave in 2007, the Islamist group has improved its attack capabilities, says a former security officer who witnessed the bloody events that paved the way for Hamas' control, adding that getting rid of the organisation, deemed terrorist by Israel, will be a mission impossible.
Mohammed Ibrahim will never forget that hot summer day in mid-June when Hamas, an Islamist group deemed terrorist by Israel, took control of Gaza, ousting the Fatah officials that had governed the enclave since 1993.
Back then, Mohammed, who is now 36, was serving as a police officer in the headquarters of the National Security, located in the heart of Gaza, when he heard a loud noise and a series of shots.
But life had other plans. In the middle of Hamas' takeover, Mohammed received a phone call. A voice alerted him that his brother, who served in Fatah's security forces, was severely injured. Mohammed rushed to the location, but by the time he managed to get there, elbowing his way through armed Hamas militants, his brother was dead.
Mohammed and his family were not the only victims of Hamas' takeover of the Strip. Over the course of eight days in June, clashes between Hamas and Fatah – which had also taken place even before the bloody events – claimed the lives of 161 Palestinians. 41 of them were civilians, among them seven children and 11 women.
Unwanted Neighbours
Yet, Hamas' capture of the strip also sent waves of shock throughout Israel. Apart…
