From the moment the first group of black-clad fighters crossed the border fence from Gaza into southern Israel, it was clear that this was an extraordinary moment of success, however bloody and fleeting, for Hamas. It was also clear that they could not have done it alone. How could this have happened? How could a terrorist group operating in a 140-square-mile patch of land, hemmed in by Israeli and Egyptian blockades and the Mediterranean, break through and launch a brazen and effective attack on one of the best-funded and most developed militaries in the Middle East? The group, which has roots in the Muslim Brotherhood, was formed in 1987 at the beginning of the first Palestinian intifada, or uprising.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/world/the-times/israelgaza-conflict-who-are-hamas-and-why-are-they-attacking-now/news-story/db39d637631b59631e4730285cc30ff3

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