SECRET documents have exposed how Hamas plotted to get Iran to launch strikes on Israel during the October 7 terror attack.
Minutes of the terror group’s secret meetings have been obtained by the New York Times and show its leader trying to persuade the Islamic Republic to join it.
The documents reveal Hamas sought to deceive Israel and draw it into a wider regional war which its leader, Yahya Sinwar, thought would destroy it.
It code named the attack “the big project” – which ultimately wound up killing 1,200 Israelis.
Months before the October terror attack, Hamas officials met a senior Iranian commander in Lebanon and requested help with striking sensitive sites at the start of the assault.
The Iranian commander said it supported helping in principle, but needed more time to prepare.
Iran ultimately did not strike Israel as part of the October 7 terror attack, but did so in April and October this year.
Hamas struck when it did as it decided it needed to attack before a new air-defence system was rolled out by Israel.
Hamas also sought to disrupt efforts to normalise the relationship between Israel and Saudi Arabia and the entrenchment of Israel’s occupation of the West Bank.
The documents were discovered on a computer found in January by IDF soldiers as they searched an underground Hamas command centre.
Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, has denied Iran had any role in the October 7 terror attack.
American officials say they have intelligence showing Iran too was caught by surprise.
Following the terror attack, Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to turn Gaza to “rubble” for what he dubbed was “Israel’s 9/11”.
Israel is still fighting to get dozens of hostages home a year after Hamas’ attack.
The terror group’s bloody assault on Israel sparked a year of bloodshed, with the Middle East now teetering on the brink of all-out war.
Israel is still razing much of Gaza as its troops look to wipe out Hamas and rescue hostages still being held by Hamas thugs a year on.
And Israel’s archenemy Iran has been using its terror proxies to do its dirty work.
Hezbollah has fired rockets from Lebanon in solidarity with Hamas, while the Houthis in Yemen have terrorised the Red Sea by attacking any ships they deem to be connected with Israel.
Meanwhile, another front has also opened in Lebanon after Israeli troops and tanks last week poured over the border on a mission to wipe out Hezbollah’s war machine.
And last week, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu vowed Tehran “will pay” after making the “big mistake” of unleashing 181 missiles at Israel last Tuesday night.
It’s left the region on the cusp of seeing an all-out war erupt as leaders across the world call for an end to hostilities.
CIA boss Burns said the region could be teetering on the cusp of a dramatic escalation as clashes could spread across the Middle East.
He said that while the US intelligence community believes neither Israel nor Iran wants “all-out conflict”, there is a huge risk of miscalculation.
Burns added: “We face the very real danger of a further regional escalation of conflict.”
He said Israel is “weighing very carefully” how it would respond to Iran’s unprecedented missile barrage last week – but warned “misjudgements” could lead to an escalatory spiral.
By Ellie Doughty, Foreign News Reporter
HAMAS’ horror October 7 massacre plot escaped Israeli spies in a catastrophic security failure that sparked a year of unprecedented chaos, experts say.
It was the catalyst that plunged four nations – Israel, Palestine, Lebanon and Iran – into war, killing tens of thousands and marking a historic shift in the Middle East.
Experts have branded the spiralling situation in the Middle East as “one of the biggest human rights crises in the world right now” – triggered by the October 7 atrocity.
Bruce Riedel, who spent 30 years in the CIA including a stint in Israel at the Tel Aviv embassy, said Israel is now “fighting a war on multiple fronts”.
“We’ve never seen anything like this in Israeli history,” he said.
Since October 7, Israel’s archenemy Iran has used its terror proxies to do its dirty work.
Hezbollah has fired rockets from Lebanon in solidarity with Hamas, while the Houthis in Yemen have terrorised the Red Sea by attacking any ships they deem to be connected with Israel.
Israel is also still razing much of Gaza as its troops look to wipe out Hamas and rescue hostages still being held by Hamas thugs a year on.
Another front has also opened in Lebanon after Israeli troops and tanks poured over the border on a mission to wipe out Hezbollah’s war machine.
