HAMAS

acronym of Harakat-al-muqawima Al-islamiyya, English Islamic Resistance Movement militant Palestinian Islamic movement in the West Bank and Gaza Strip that is dedicated to the destruction of Israel and the creation of an Islamic state in Palestine. Founded in 1987, Hamas opposes the 1993 peace accords between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). From the late 1970s, Islamic activists connected with the pan-Arab Muslim Brotherhood established a network of charities, clinics, and schools in Gaza and were active in many mosques; their activities in the West Bank generally were limited to the universities. The Muslim Brotherhood's activities in the West Bank and Gaza were generally nonviolent, but a number of small groups in the occupied territories began to call for jihad, or holy war, against Israel. In December 1987, at the beginning of the Palestinian intifada (uprising) against Israeli occupation, Hamas (which is also Arabic for zeal) was established by members of the Muslim Brotherhood and religious factions of the PLO, and the new organization quickly acquired a broad following. In its 1988 charter, Hamas maintained that Palestine is an Islamic homeland that can never be surrendered to non-Muslims and that waging jihad to liberate Palestine is the duty of Palestinians. This position brought it into conflict with the PLO, which in 1988 recognized Israel's right to exist. Hamas' armed wing, the 'Izz al-Din al-Qassam Forces, began a campaign of terrorism against Israel. Israel imprisoned the founder of Hamas, Sheikh Ahmad Yasin, in 1991 and arrested hundreds of Hamas activists. Hamas denounced the 1993 peace agreement between Israel and the PLO and, along with the Islamic Jihad group, subsequently intensified its terror campaign by the use of suicide bombers. The PLO and Israel responded with harsh security and punitive measures, although PLO chairman Yasir 'Arafat sought to include Hamas in the political process, appointing Hamas members to leadership positions in the Palestinian Authority.