Mossad did not create Hamas, they funded it during its earlier period when it would not have survived without external funds. The difference is slight, but worth noting. Th
…is activity occurred in the mid-1970s when the Palestinian Liberation Organization was the primary group fighting for Palestinian Independence. They were causing violence and problems throughout the Levant (especially in Jordan and Lebanon) and were able to bring a number of different Palestinian Terrorist and Paramilitary Groups under one banner. However, Hamas refused to join the PLO since the PLO had a primarily Arab Nationalist and Secularist vision for Palestine whereas Hamas had an Islamist vision for Palestine. Wishing to encourage division in the Palestinian ranks and perhaps get the Palestinians to fight one another instead of causing problems for Israel or other Arab countries, Mossad sought to strengthen Hamas to counter-balance the PLO. Hamas was not able to counter-balance the PLO at this early point. Instead we see Fatah, the successor to the PLO, in conflict with Hamas today, almost 30 years later than intended and ruining the Palestinians' chance for a viable state and further complicating peace with the Palestinians. Fatah is significantly more moderate today than the PLO was in the 1970s and 1980s. This is certainly a moment where hindsight is 20-20. (MORE)