Welcome back!  Hopefully you’ve had the opportunity to digest the facts about Hezbollah that you discovered yesterday.  Today, we’ll take a look at Hamas.

Unlike Hezbollah, who is based primarily outside Israel’s borders, Hamas has literally set up shop in Israel’s backyard.  Today Hamas occupies the Gaza Strip, and has considerable influence in the West Bank.  A quick glance at the map to the right reveals the Gaza Strip and the West Bank in orange.  As you see, they are both within the borders of Israel, thus creating unbelievable security issues for the nation of Israel.

There is much to discover about Hamas, so let’s start once more with general data.  We’ll return to Wikipedia and search “Hamas.”  (Remember, Wikipedia is a secular resource, so we’re after facts, not Biblical insight!)  Within the first two paragraphs, find these facts:

• What does “Hamas” mean?
• Upon what principles was Hamas founded?
• Of whom are they an offshoot?
• For what purpose was Hamas founded?

Palestinians occupy the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.  Though Palestinians and Hamas share the goal of destroying Israel, they are political rivals.  Based on information provided by Wikipedia (fourth paragraph), what happened in January 2006?

Now, scroll down to “Goals.”  According to Hamas’s 1988 charter, what is the goal of Hamas?  Does it seem similar to the goal of the Palestinians and/or Hezbollah?

Scroll down to “History.”  The first section (“Early Islamic activism in Gaza”) describes Hamas’s connection with the PLO.  Read that section, and then scroll to “Establishment” to find these facts:

• What led the seven Palestinians to found Hamas?
• What led up to Hamas building a relationship with Hezbollah?

Scroll to “2006 presidential and legislative elections.”  Yasser Arafat, the infamous PLO founder, had established Fatah as the political force in the Palestinian Authority.  In 2006, however, Hamas wrestled control of the Palestinian legislature from Fatah.  This brought about a conflict.

See “Hamas-Fatah conflict.”

• Where did tensions between Fatah and Hamas play out?
• What happened on June 9 and June 25, 2006?

Let’s take a look at how Hamas is funded.  Scroll down to “Funding.”

• What was Hamas’s estimated annual budget in 2009?
• Who was Hamas’s largest backer in the early 2000’s?
• Who was Hamas’s primary supporter from 1993-2006? What caused the decrease after 2009?  (Fifth paragraph of “Funding.”

Now let’s look at “Antisemitism and anti-Zionism”…scroll down to find it.

• Based on Article 7 of the Hamas Charter, what is Hamas’s attitude toward Jews?
• Based on Article 22, who was responsible for “the French Revolution, the Russian Revolution, colonialism and both world wars?”

As you scroll through the remainder of the Wikipedia entry for Hamas, you will discover lists of atrocious acts of terrorism committed by Hamas.

Great job hanging in there through lots of details and facts.  Hopefully you have a better understanding of Hezbollah and Hamas, and their mindsets.  As evil as they are, Hezbollah and Hamas are not the only terrorist groups with evil intent.  They are simply ones who make their hatred of Israel well known.

A big surprise awaits you tomorrow, so don’t jump ship!  We’ll enjoy a special treat from a true insider!  Don’t miss the boat tomorrow!  Meanwhile, as you can see Israel is surrounded by terrorists intent on their destruction.  Please pray for the peace of Jerusalem!