Hamas, understanding the organization

Military Review, July-August, 2003 by Youssef H. Aboul-Enein

Methods of Internal Communication

One of the more incredible parts of the book discusses how the organization developed operational security. Al-Falooji claims that operational security was developed by observing the KGB (the Soviet Secret Police and intelligence agency) and, amazingly, from watching films. The author highlights the use of dead drops and ciphering.

One example of dead drops has the author requesting a Hamas member to go to a certain mosque, at a certain hour, wearing certain clothing, sitting in a certain area of the mosque, and sitting in a certain way. A question would be asked such as, "Excuse me, what time is it?" The response would be, "Our appointment is with heaven, God willing." The member would then surrender a sealed message. All these prearranged actions had to take place or the courier would calmly leave the mosque.

Al-Falooji details the Quranic cipher method of writing reports and messages, which involves a verse from the Quran. Ciphering methods use certain verses and only letters from these verses for encryption. Others include letters from verses numbered and used to encode messages. He claims that one of the most popular verses is number 29 of Surat al-Fath.

Al-Falooji's book is autobiographical and, therefore, contains many references to himself, his education, and his role in Hamas. And while the book argues the righteousness of the Islamist cause in liberating Palestine, it is an important contribution to understanding the inner workings of the Hamas organization. It also provides a historical look into how the Palestine Liberation Organization and Hamas reconciled their differences to pursue a common cause in dealing with Israel.

Such books as this, although in Arabic, can give military planners an understanding of the techniques of organized religious militant organizations. Those involved in intelligence, counterterrorism, and regional foreign area officers will appreciate Al-Falooji's book.

Lieutenant Commander Youssef H, Aboul-Enein, U.S. Navy, is a Middle East Foreign Area Officer currently serving in the Pentagon. For the past several years, he has been working with Military Review to bring Arabic topics of interest to the journal's pages.