Hamas is understood to have shunned electronic communication in a cunning bid to keep Israeli military intelligence in the dark about plans for the bloody assault on the settlements bordering Gaza.
Israelis have long believed their security services are one of the most effective in the world but many are now asking how the latest attacks by Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups were not detected.
Hamas’ military arm is now believed to have been preparing for months to carry the multiple-pronged rampage which saw squads of fighters infiltrate the Israeli border fence in the thousands using ‘Stone Age’ tactics which did not leave a digital footprint.
The group’s leaders reportedly ditched phones and laptops and only met to discuss the operation in special rooms designed to be impenetrable for surveillance.
Hamas also managed to convince the Israeli military that the group’s military might was spent, an Israeli security source told Reuters.
Publicly the militant group expressed an unwillingness to engage with Israel – while behind-the-scenes plans were in motion to launch the devasting wave of attacks.
A spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces has admitted the intelligence blunder saying: “They got us. They surprised us and they came fast from many spots – both from the air and the ground and the sea.”
Hamas managed to even construct a mock-up Israeli settlement for fighters to train in.
When the incursion began on Saturday, October 7, Hamas was able to send elite fighters armed with assault rifles, drones and anti-tank rockets to breach the frontier with explosives.
The Hamas commando teams then swept into nearby Israeli military bases catching soldiers stationed in them completely off-guard.
Combat videos were later released on Hamas propaganda channels so jubilant Hamas fighters inside Israeli bases and checkpoints seizing weapons and parading captured IDF soldiers.
The Israeli military has acknowledged that a public inquiry will need to be held to uncover how the intelligence failure came about, but IDF spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari has pointed out that will have to wait until after the fighting is done.
