Exclusive | Gaza Chief s Brutal Calculation: Civilian Bloodshed Will Help Hamas – WSJ

For months, Yahya Sinwar has resisted pressure to cut a ceasefire-and-hostages deal with Israel. Behind his decision, messages the Hamas military leader in Gaza has sent to mediators show, is a calculation that more fighting and more Palestinian civilian deaths work to his advantage.

We have the Israelis right where we want them, Sinwar said in a recent message to Hamas officials seeking to broker an agreement with Qatari and Egyptian officials.

Fighting between Israeli forces and Hamas units in the Gaza Strip s south has disrupted humanitarian-aid shipments, caused mounting civilian casualties and intensified international criticism of Israel s efforts to eradicate the Islamist extremist group.

For much of Sinwar s political life, shaped by bloody conflict with an Israeli state that he says has no right to exist, he has stuck to a simple playbook. Backed into a corner, he looks to violence for a way out. The current fight in Gaza is no exception.

via www.wsj.com