In recent weeks, the strengthening of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and criticism in the Gaza Strip that Hamas has "forgotten" to oppose and fight Israel has put the terrorist organization on alert. In this situation, Hamas needs achievements. It earned this "achievement" thanks to the clashes at Al-Aqsa Mosque and the rocket it fired at Israel on Monday night.
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One of the claims made against Hamas is that the organization has neglected the "fight against the occupation," and is cultivating a direct channel with Israel in the civilian domain, including obtaining relief and coordinating the entry of thousands of merchants for work in Israel, and as a result is not significantly different from the Palestinian Authority.
Hamas is trying to shake off these allegations. One of the ways of doing so is to try to appropriate for themselves the unrest in Jerusalem, and create the impression among the Palestinian public that the clashes at Al-Aqsa began following the call of the organization's senior figures "not to remain silent about the crimes of the occupation in Jerusalem."
Senior Hamas figures are not hiding their satisfaction about the regional and international interest they are receiving and are boasting about contacts made with mediators. The approaches from mediators give Hamas the opportunity to claim that they are a main player in the Palestinian arena, at least regarding everything having to do with Jerusalem. The fact that a UN emissary and others are currently talking to Hamas leaders provides them with legitimacy and strengthens their positions.
The last time Hamas was on the "international diplomatic map" was during the "marches of return" on the Gaza border a few years ago, when mediators "courted" the organization in an attempt to reduce tensions in the field. Today, Hamas is becoming relevant again and is exploiting the events at Al-Aqsa to once again become the center of attention.
Thus far, there are those in the Palestinian public who think Israel refrained from evicting residents of homes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood of Jerusalem because of Hamas and are claiming that Israel backed down out of a fear of escalation in the Gaza Strip. One way or another, Hamas is again trying to present itself as the "defender of Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa," as happened in Sheikh Jarrah.
However, Hamas is careful to clarify that the recent contacts with mediators about Al-Aqsa do not include reaching an agreement for a truce with Israel, one that would include understandings regarding the Gaza Strip. This allows the organization to claim that "all options are open," and preserve the right to act when and where it chooses to.
A few hours before the rocket was fired at Israel on Monday, Hamas and the PIJ again warned of the implications of "Israeli aggression at Al-Aqsa." A senior Hamas leader abroad, Salah al-Arouri, said: "Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa are witnesses to the heroic campaign. We have a lot of patience, and we won't give up."
PIJ leader Ziad Nahala noted: "The disturbances at Al-Aqsa are ones that are worth sacrificing for, and Israel's threats to stop the easing measures in Gaza won't make us stay quiet about what is happening in Jerusalem and the West Bank."
Nahala also held a call with Ali Akbar Velayati, one of the senior advisors to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and thanked him for his country's support for the Palestinian cause and resistance.
"What Israel is doing in Jerusalem and in Islamic holy places is aggression and the Palestinian people are right to fulfil its obligations in order to repel this aggression. We will keep to the way of jihad and resistance until we free our holy sites from the impurity of the occupiers," Nahala said.
Velayati, on his part, sent the greetings of Khamenei "to the fighters," and emphasized that Iran is following the struggle of the Palestinian people "who are defending Al-Aqsa Mosque, and are a symbol of the Islamic Ummah [nation] in defending Jerusalem and its identity." He also praised the "steadfastness of the Palestinian people and its sacrifice."
Beyond the fact that Hamas has succeeded in inflaming Jerusalem and has received "patronage" for the events in Al-Aqsa, the organization has been careful to make clear in its messages that it is only a matter of time before Gaza involves itself in the struggle. If Israel "crosses the red lines" in Jerusalem, or alternately, when the PIJ or other "rogue" elements in Gaza push for an escalation – this window is expected to close.
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