This is an extract from Road to October 7: A Brief History of Palestinian Islamism, now available from Verso Books.
On June 25, 2006, eight Palestinian militants from the Qassam Brigades, the Popular Resistance Committee, and the Army of Islam dug their way out at the southern end of Gaza. Approaching silently, the militants took an Israeli tank unit by surprise and killed two Israeli soldiers. Another two Israelis were wounded; one of them, Sergeant Gilad Shalit, was dragged away through the border fence.
The Israelis responded by shelling the Gaza Strip, killing 1,390 Palestinians, of whom 454 were women and children. When a cease-fire was reached four months later, in November, Shalit was still nowhere to be found.
Negotiations for the release of Shalit persisted through the unofficial back channels established between Hamas and Israeli authorities. After years of trust-building, both parties were ready to reach a settlement in 2011, Shalit in exchange for 1,027 Palestinian prisoners.
Yahya Sinwar had by then been incarcerated for twenty-two years. Sinwar was reportedly against the Shalit deal, although he himself was included, because he perceived it as providing too many concessions to the Israelis. In fact, when the negotiations reached a crucial stage, Sinwar was moved to solitary confinement for fear of his thwarting the prisoner exchange.
We do not know what Sinwar must have felt when he returned to Gaza and witnessed the changes that had transpired over the past two decades. One thing was the desolation…
Auteur: Erik Skare
