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Hamas and the Islamic State: Growing Cooperation in Sinai

(Washington Institute for Near East Policy) Ehud Yaari - Hamas has been increasing its clandestine military cooperation with the Islamic State's "Sinai Province," culminating in a prolonged secret visit to Gaza this month by IS Sinai's military chief Shadi al-Menai. Menai has been at the top of Egypt's most-wanted list. Over the past two years, IS Sinai has helped Hamas move weapons from Iran and Libya through the peninsula, taking a generous cut from each shipment. In Sinai, a thousand heavily armed Bedouins affiliated with IS still pose a serious threat to Egyptian troops and government offices. Egypt's General Intelligence Directorate officials are convinced that Hamas is engaged in a sustained effort to undermine government control over the Sinai, even as it publicly seeks a rapprochement with Cairo. Hamas cooperation with IS Sinai also opens the door to IS gaining more ground among the Palestinians. The writer is an international fellow with The Washington Institute and a Middle East commentator for Israel's Channel Two television.
2015-12-16 00:00:00
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