HAMAS formed in late 1987 at the beginning of the first Palestinian intifada (uprising). Its roots are in the Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, and it is supported by a robust sociopolitical structure inside the Palestinian territories. The group’s charter calls for establishing ...

Hamas's primary base of action and support is in the Gaza Strip, which it has controlled since 2007. It also operates in the West Bank and Lebanon, and some Hamas leaders and personnel live and/or work in various Arab countries and Turkey.

5 days ago - The Islamic Resistance Movement, abbreviated Hamas (an acronym from the Arabic: حركة المقاومة الإسلامية, romanized: Ḥarakat al-Muqāwamah al-ʾIslāmiyyah), is a Sunni Islamist Palestinian nationalist political organisation with a military wing known as the al-Qassam Brigades.

October 6, 2025 - The conflict has killed more than sixty-four thousand people as of September 2025, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry. A new peace plan proposed by the Trump administration in late September is currently under negotiation. ... Matthew C. Waxman · Armed Conflict? Trump’s Venezuela Boat Strikes Test U.S. Law · Dozens of countries, including the United States, have designated Hamas a terrorist organization over the years, though some apply this label only to its military wing.

Hamas was founded—in the early days of the first Intifada uprising—amid growing Palestinian fury over the Israeli military occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. The Hamas Covenant was largely crafted by Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, a quadriplegic and partially blind cleric who was the founder and spiritual leader of the militant militia in Gaza.

HAMAS has been the de facto governing body in the Gaza Strip since 2007, when it ousted the Palestinian Authority. Although HAMAS amended its charter in 2017 to remove a call for Israel’s destruction, it does not recognize Israel as a state and continues to advocate all forms of resistance ...

July 20, 1998 - Hamas is a militant Palestinian nationalist and Islamist movement dedicated to the establishment of an independent Islamic state in historical Palestine. The group won an electoral majority in the 2006 legislative elections, but the legislature ...

President Mahmoud Abbas appointed a new prime minister, Mohammad Mustafa. Israeli authorities claimed responsibility for killing four Hamas leaders in Gaza, and were widely thought to be responsible for the assassination of two other senior Hamas politicians in Lebanon and Iran.

The name “Hamas” is an acronym for “Harakat al-Muqawama al-Islamiya”, which is translated into English as “Islamic Resistance Movement”. Hamas is one of the Palestinian territories’ two major political parties, with the other being ...

Even though Hezbollah is a Shiite party-militia and Hamas is a Sunni organization, (two branches of Islam generally at odds with each other) their goal common goal of ending the state of Israel prevails. At the same time, a large issue of countries or regional groups such as the European Union, the United States, Canada, Japan, Australia, Paraguay, the Organization of American States and Egypt maintain Hamas on their list of terrorist organizations because of its use of violence against civilians, including suicide bombings and rocket attacks.

Examples: "Trade Relations", "Export Controls" · Examples: hr5, h.r.5, sjres8, sa2, pl116-21, 86Stat1326

Contains many features across the full range of issues pertaining to international terrorism: terrorist groups, wanted terrorists, and technical pages on various threat-related topics

October 13, 2023 - Its rival party, Fatah, which dominates the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and rules in the West Bank, has renounced violence. The split in Palestinian leadership and Hamas's unwavering hostility toward Israel have diminished prospects for stability in Gaza.

September 3, 2025 - The EU imposed sanctions on Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in 2024. The EU, US, UK and other countries have designated both as terrorist groups.

In 1988, the group published the HAMAS charter, defining itself as a chapter of the Muslim Brotherhood and stating its primary objective was to annihilate Israel and replace it with a Palestinian Islamic state. HAMAS claims its goal is to liberate Palestinians and views Israel as an occupying ...

Sanctions in response to terrorist attacks perpetrated by Hamas 23 January 2024

The Palestinian political and militant group known as Hamas, or the Islamic Resistance Movement, gained control of the Gaza Strip in 2007, following its victory in the preceding year’s Palestinian legislative elections and a subsequent conflict with Fatah, the ruling party in the West Bank.

This Statement of Reasons is based on publicly available information about Hamas. To the Australian Government’s knowledge, this information is accurate, reliable and has been corroborated by classified information where available.

According to the State Department, “Hamas has received · funding, weapons, and training from Iran and raises funds · in Persian Gulf countries,” and Iran provides up to $100 · million annually in combined support to Palestinian · militants. U.S. officials have said that “Iranian leaders did ·

February 13, 2025 - Find press releases and related content from Secretary Blinken and other State Department officials on the conflict.