Hamas Leadership and America’s Extradition Option

Hamas has conducted the most devastating terror attack in Israel’s history, demonstrating humanity’s worst depravity. The attack led to the tragic loss of over 1,200 lives, including at least 22 Americans, with many more individuals held hostage. The US has a responsibility to its citizens to demand the extradition of Hamas leadership to face trial in the US. Drawing upon precedent and previous successful extraditions of international terrorists, the US can leverage diplomatic relationships and military assets to actively pursue their extradition from Qatar, Lebanon, or other locations where they may reside.

Cutting the Electricity Supply to Gaza – Consequences and Implications

This policy brief provides a short background on Gaza’s electricity and water sectors and examines the immediate consequences of cutting off supply to the Gaza Strip. Overall, it argues that the tactical benefits from such a move are somewhat limited since Hamas has adapted to frequent supply cuts with a wide array of small-scale generators and rooftop PV panels, leaving the population to absorb the brunt of the shortage. The broader impact of the power outage will be on the ability to supply water to the Gaza Strip, which can create a humanitarian crisis if not addressed.

Iron Swords II: ‘It is a New Regional Order, Stupid’, and it must include the Demilitarization of Political Islam

In the coming years, global attention to the Middle East will diminish except in extreme crisis situations. The Israel-Saudi-moderates coalition will mainly bear the burden of stabilizing regional security. The current crisis, in which the United States is aligning with Israel in full capacity, must be used to establish - at both the ground and the political levels - the principle of stopping political Islam from controlling any military capabilities. The campaign to defeat Hamas is a step in this direction.

Iron Swords I: A Fundamental Miscalculation on Both Sides That Must Lead to the Defeat of Hamas

The massive and horrifically destructive military invasion by Hamas into Israel on October 7, 2023 signifies a crisis in Israel’s security doctrine principles of the last two decades or more: a failure of early warning, a failure of defense, a failure of deterrence, and a failure of the minimal casualties ethos. These have combined to create an overwhelming security crisis. The events of October 7 created a new strategic clarity regarding another principle: Israel must achieve a comprehensive military decision on Hamas and fully dismantle its governmental control. By committing this invasion, Hamas made a strategic mistake: It should have calculated that there was a possibility that the State of Israel would respond by acting to eliminate its physical existence. The most important thing in the coming weeks is to focus on achieving this goal.

The Address for a Response to the Lebanese Attacks on Israel Is Gaza, Not Beirut

Even if Hezbollah is responsible for the latest rocket attack on the Galilee, Hamas is culpable for the security deterioration in southern Lebanon due to its efforts to expand its terrorist activities to the territory of neighboring Arab states. Israel must establish a new equation in which lack of peace in the north is met in kind in the Gaza Strip.

Challenges to Gaza Ceasefire Are Arising Quickly

Yaakov Lappin
June 24, 2021
Paper No. 2079

Hamas will always prioritize its radical ideological and political objectives over pragmatic considerations whenever those two factors come into conflict. As Israeli decision makers monitor Hamas’s renewed efforts at force build-up following Operation Guardian of the Walls, they face dilemmas as they look for “least-worst” options.

As Gaza Truce Holds, Preventing Hamas from Re-Arming Takes Center Stage

Yaakov Lappin
June 10, 2021
Paper No. 2069

Now that the truce has taken hold in Gaza, efforts must be made by the international community as well as by Israel to ensure that Hamas does not once again exploit the flow of humanitarian aid and reconstruction supplies into Gaza to rebuild its terror infrastructure.

Lessons of the Gaza War

The IDF’s defensive achievements against Hamas in the most recent war were groundbreaking. Yet for all its operational superiority, it will have a hard time defending Israel within the 1967 borders, especially in the event of a multi-arena conflict.

Can Hamas, an Iranian Proxy, Be Deterred?

Ofira Seliktar
May 31, 2021
Paper No. 2058

The question of how to deter Hamas from starting another conflict has dominated recent discourse. Most observers ignore the fact that the terror group is an Iranian proxy, meaning it presents unique challenges to deterrence.

The Strategic Genius Behind Allowing Qatari Suitcases of Cash into Gaza

Qatar and Hamas were duped when, on the fourth day of the Guardian of the Walls offensive, Israel destroyed the Qataris’ billion-dollar investment in the terrorist organization in 40 minutes. The question is, can Israel leverage this success into disarming Hamas? It all depends on the resolve of Israel’s leadership.