Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, who orchestrated the deadly attack on October 7, 2023, attempted to persuade both Iran and Hezbollah to participate in the assault on Israel’s Gaza border area, according to The New York Times.

The Times report, which is based on documents obtained by the publication, revealed that Hamas had initially planned the attack, dubbed “The Big Project,” in the fall of 2022. However, the operation was delayed as Hamas worked to gain support from Iran and Hezbollah.

At that time, Hamas believed the internal political instability in Israel created a prime opportunity for an assault.

In the summer of 2023, a senior Hamas figure, Khalil al-Hayya, met with Saeed Izadi, a high-ranking member of the IRGC’s Quds Force, in Lebanon. During this meeting, al-Hayya requested that Iran target key Israeli sites at the beginning of the attack.

Izadi informed al-Hayya that while Iran and Hezbollah were on board with the operation in principle, they needed additional time to prepare for it.

A few months before the massacre, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh addressed a meeting of Palestinian organization leaders in Egypt, stating, “We are at an exceptional point in the conflict with the enemy that obligates us to think together and to make exceptional decisions surrounding the question of the fight against this policy.”

He continued, “We are at a window of opportunity that we must take advantage of since the occupation is suffering from an unprecedented internal conflict, the tension in its foreign relations, and its lack of ability to break our nation’s will and escalating fight.”

Haniyeh emphasized, “We have a great responsibility and one way, which is the advancement of this conflict and the heroic intifada, and the support of it so we can reach our goals and end the occupation, uproot the settlements, and restore our full sovereignty to the occupied West Bank as an initial step to restoring our sovereignty on the entire historic land of Palestine.”

{Matzav.com Israel}