In an attempt to signal "business as usual" in the Gaza Strip, Hamas officials on Thursday posted photos of a "work meeting" between Hamas political bureau chief and former Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh with Hamas military leader Yahya Sinwar to the terrorist organization's Twitter account.
The move follows a report in Israel Hayom that Haniyeh and Sinwar have repeatedly locked horns over the group's policies in Gaza, and that the rivalry has reached the point where the two no longer speak to each other.
Senior Hamas officials accuse Israel of using the crisis to deflect public attention from a botched intelligence operation inside Gaza on Nov. 11, in which an IDF officer was killed.
According to sources in Gaza, the growing animosity between the two has caused a devastating rift in Hamas, with Haniyeh's supporters pitted against Sinwar's supporters. Haniyeh's camp includes top political officials while Sinwar's camp hails from Hamas' military wing, the Izzedine al-Qassam Brigades, led by Hamas strongman Mohammed Deif.
A senior Hamas official described the rift in Hamas' leadership as "unprecedented" and said it has undermined the Egyptian-led efforts to strike an agreement between Hamas and Israel that would allow for the economic rehabilitation of Gaza.
The official said Sinwar "is perceived as much more hawkish than Haniyeh, because he comes from the Izzedine al-Qassam Brigades, but the truth is he is far more pragmatic than Haniyeh, who can't seem to make difficult decisions and take responsibility for them."
A former senior Hamas official told Israel Hayom that the current crisis in the organization is so severe that many of its top members have decided to resign over it.
Meanwhile, Egypt has prohibited Haniyeh from using its border crossing with Gaza to depart for the International Islamic Unity Conference in Tehran. It did, however, allow a senior Hamas delegation to travel to Cairo for reconciliation talks with senior Fatah officials.
