Revealed: Hamas' chilling 9/11-style attack that was being planned on Tel Aviv

In the years preceding the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, Hamas’ leadership had been developing plans for even more deadly assaults, as revealed by documents recently captured by Israeli forces.

These papers accessed by numerous media outlets like The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal, alongside electronic records, show that the group had been pressing Iran for financial support and military training while contemplating attacks far beyond the scale of what occurred in October.

These captured documents, comprising a trove of letters and presentations, provide insight into Hamas’ broader ambitions to devastate Israel. Notably, the group had previously considered executing a 9/11-style toppling of a Tel Aviv skyscraper.

More from Explainers

How ChatGPT is becoming everyone’s BFF and why that’s dangerous This Week in Explainers: How recovering from Gen-Z protests is a Himalayan task for Nepal

This objective was just one part of a larger plan to weaken Israel on multiple fronts. Although some proposals were impractical — like using horse-drawn chariots — Hamas had also developed more feasible and destructive strategies, including targeting Israeli infrastructure like railways and ports.

What have the documents revealed about Hamas’ intentions?

The seized documents, which Israeli officials began analysing in October 2023, include detailed presentations and maps showing Hamas’ vision for a coordinated, multi-front attack against Israel.

Editor’s Picks

1

US to deploy THAAD missile system in Israel: What is it? Will it be a game-changer in West Asia? 2

How Hezbollah drones breached Israel’s sophisticated defences and hit its military camp

Some of the proposals were aspirational or impractical, such as the use of chariots to silently transport fighters. However, other elements of the plan — such as the targeting of Israel’s rail system, military bases, and commercial hubs — were more developed.

A key document, recovered in November 2022, presented a range of attack options designed to overwhelm Israel’s defenses. It showed how Hamas intended to mobilise not just its own forces but also other allied militant groups from Lebanon, Syria, and possibly Egypt.

The plan detailed the use of fishing boats as improvised attack vessels, chariots for rugged terrain, and fuel-laden trains as moving bombs capable of causing massive explosions within Israeli cities.

The most dramatic element of the plan was an attempt to bring down a major Tel Aviv skyscraper, with potential targets including the 70-storey Moshe Aviv Tower and the Azrieli Center complex.

The collapse of one of these buildings, Hamas believed, would create an “unprecedented crisis” for Israel, reminiscent of the destruction of the World Trade Center towers in New York on September 11, 2001.

Although Hamas had not yet figured out the technical means to carry out such a demolition, the plan reflected their ambition to cause mass casualties and strategic chaos within Israel’s heartland.

What have the documents revealed about Iran’s involvement?

Hamas’ relationship with Iran played a central role in these plots. The documents detail Hamas’ appeals to Iran’s top leadership, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, for substantial financial and military support.

In a series of letters written in 2021, Yahya Sinwar, Hamas’ leader in Gaza, outlined plans to use Iranian funds to train 12,000 additional fighters, hoping to obliterate Israel within two years. He requested $500 million in aid, pledging that every dollar would be used towards achieving the group’s “sacred goal” of annihilating Israel.

Sinwar’s letters stated the urgency of restoring Hamas’ military capabilities following damage sustained in the 2021 Gaza conflict. Hamas sought Iran’s assistance in replenishing their forces, stating that Iran’s support would allow them to “uproot this monstrous entity” — a reference to Israel.

So did Hamas allies know about the October 7 attack?

Despite these grandiose plans, Hamas operated in extreme secrecy, particularly when it came to sharing details with its allies. According to U.S. and Israeli intelligence assessments, Iran and Hezbollah were aware that Hamas was planning a major operation, but neither group was fully informed of the scope or timing of the October 7 attack.

Sinwar, who is known for his deep paranoia about leaks, chose not to disclose specific details to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) or Hezbollah, likely in an effort to avoid external interference or to preserve the element of surprise.

The attack on October 7 saw Hamas breach Israel’s southern defences with approximately 6,000 fighters, who overwhelmed military bases and civilian communities, killing over 1,200 people. The assault, coordinated in part by Sinwar, was the deadliest act of violence against Jewish civilians since the Holocaust.

What motivated Hamas to conduct the October 7 attack?

The captured documents also shed light on Hamas’ motivations for the timing of the October 7 assault. Minutes from a Hamas politburo meeting in early October 2023 reveal the group’s alarm over Israel’s growing ties with Arab Gulf states, particularly in the context of the Abraham Accords.

Hamas leaders feared that this rapprochement could further weaken their “resistance project,” compelling them to strike before Israel became more politically and militarily entrenched in the region.

Hamas’ decision to act was also influenced by internal Israeli political tensions over judicial reforms, which the group saw as an opportunity to strike at a perceived moment of national disarray.

This opportunism, combined with the long-term strategic planning outlined in the captured documents, reveals the calculated nature of the assault and the group’s broader intentions to dismantle the Israeli state.

What now?

Though Hamas had been urging Iran to commit to direct involvement in its assault on Israel, Tehran remains hesitant. Iran, while supportive of Hamas’ overall goal of destroying Israel, has traditionally used proxy forces like Hezbollah and Hamas to avoid a direct military confrontation with Israel.

Nevertheless, Iran’s support for Hamas has been extensive, as evidenced by intelligence reports indicating that Iran has provided hundreds of millions of dollars to Hamas’ military wing in recent years.

Hamas’ October 7 attack, now revealed to be just one component of a broader, long-planned campaign, has deepened the regional conflict.

Also Watch:

Iran, though initially reluctant to engage directly, has been drawn into the fighting, particularly after Israeli airstrikes targeted Iranian-linked sites in Syria and Lebanon. Hezbollah’s increased rocket attacks from Lebanon and Israel’s retaliatory strikes have escalated tensions along Israel’s northern border.

Meanwhile, the war in Gaza has exacted a heavy toll, with over 42,000 people reported killed, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. In Lebanon, more than 2,000 people have died, and the conflict shows no signs of de-escalating as Israel intensifies its military campaign against Hamas and Hezbollah.

With inputs from agencies