Hamas Lies Low on Egypt Crisis

Hamas’ concerns over Egypt are growing after the dismissal of their Islamist ally Mohammed Morsi. Indeed, the movement believed that the election of Morsi would bode well for Hamas. It celebrated the victory of the new Egyptian president and distributed sweets, believing that the arrival of the Muslim Brotherhood to power would increase Hamas’ strength in the Gaza Strip and abroad.

Hamas’s leadership and members, as well as the Palestinian public, have been keeping a close eye on the accelerating events in Egypt, as they have a great impact on the Palestinian cause. Nevertheless, the leaders of the Islamic movement and its affiliated media outlets have remained calm, waiting for the possible outcome of the Egyptian crisis.

According to an informed source that spoke to Al-Monitor on the condition of anonymity, Hamas has issued a clear statement to all its leadership and members not to talk about the details of what is happening in Egypt, limiting their statements to “express their sympathy and hope that Egypt might emerge peacefully from this current crisis, as the movement does not want to interfere in Arab domestic affairs, and so the Egyptian opposition does not use the movement’s stances and statements to their advantage.”

The source explained that Hamas has held consecutive meetings that include all of its affiliates to discuss the implications of events in Egypt and to put forward “different scenarios to deal with the situation in Egypt, whether the Muslim Brotherhood would manage to overcome the crisis or not.” The source refused to disclose the nature of these scenarios.