Key Takeaways
- Israel nurtured local Islamist movements, particularly the Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, to counter the PLO.
- Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, a charismatic Palestinian cleric, built a social and religious network in Gaza.
- Gulf funds, primarily from Saudi Arabia, supported Yassin’s movement, leading to its eventual transformation into Hamas.
During the 1970s and 1980s, Israel strategically supported local Islamist movements to counter the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO), a secular and left-leaning group. This was part of a broader geopolitical strategy to weaken Palestinian resistance to its occupation of the West Bank and Gaza.
The PLO viewed the growing influence of Sheikh Ahmed Yassin’s followers, known as al-Mujama al-Islami, as a threat, considering them 'quietist fundamentalists' focused on social welfare and moral purification.
Despite PLO concerns, Israel allowed al-Mujama to operate unhindered, even granting it permission to establish mosques, schools, and medical clinics. In 1979, the Israeli military administration formally recognised the charity, further legitimising its activities.
Gulf funds, primarily from Saudi Arabia, flowed into al-Mujama’s coffers, providing it with substantial financial support. Israeli authorities, including the military governor Brig Gen Yitzhak Segev, were reportedly provided with state budgets to assist in funding Yassin’s project.
Throughout the 1980s, the Israeli military governor Yitzhak Segev maintained a policy of tolerating Yassin’s activities, as long as they were directed against the PLO rather than Israeli soldiers. This policy allowed Yassin to build a vast social network.
Violent clashes erupted between the PLO and Yassin’s followers in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Members and supporters of al-Mujama torched PLO offices, attacked cinemas, and targeted secular intellectuals.
Years later, political scientist Ahron Bregman noted that Israel’s policy of tolerating Yassin’s activities contributed to the eventual transformation of al-Mujama into Hamas, a group that would go on to challenge the PLO’s influence in the region.
The current Hamas is the result of Israel’s efforts to weaken secular Palestinian resistance by backing a 'counterweight'. This strategy, while initially intended to curb the PLO’s influence, ultimately backfired, leading to the rise of a powerful and influential Islamist movement.
