who are hamas

Hamas, formally known as the Islamic Resistance Movement (Ḥarakat al-Muqāwamah al-ʾIslāmiyyah), is a Palestinian nationalist Sunni Islamist political organization with a military wing called the Qassam Brigades. Founded in 1987 by Palestinian Islamic scholar Ahmed Yassin during the First Intifada against Israeli occupation, it originated from an Islamic charity linked to the Muslim Brotherhood. Hamas has governed the Gaza Strip since 2007 after taking control from the rival Palestinian faction Fatah. Hamas aims to establish an independent Islamic state in historic Palestine and rejects the existence of Israel, which puts it in conflict with the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and others who support a two-state solution. The group uses both political and violent means, including suicide bombings and rocket attacks against Israeli targets. It also runs social service institutions and has a significant base of support among Palestinians. Hamas has been involved in multiple conflicts with Israel, including recent escalations since 2023. The organization was initially discreetly supported by Israel as a counterbalance to the secular PLO but later became its rival. It gained political power by winning the 2006 Palestinian legislative elections and subsequently seized control of Gaza in 2007. Since then, Israel and Egypt have imposed a blockade on Gaza, and numerous wars have followed between Hamas and Israel. Hamas receives some external financial support, primarily from Iran and private donors in Arab states and the Palestinian diaspora. It is a complex organization with both political and militant elements, considered a terrorist organization by several countries due to its use of violence and attacks against civilians.