What Is Hamas’s Strategy?
The Political Scene | The New Yorker
The New Yorker
4.3 • 3.9K Ratings
🗓️ 18 October 2023
⏱️ 36 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Earlier this week,The New Yorkerpublished aninterviewwith a senior Hamas political official, Mousa Abu Marzouk, about the group’s rationale behind the October 7th massacre in Israel. How did Hamas militants determine that now was the time for violence? And, given that Netanyahu’s deadly response was a sure thing, how did they weigh the cost of Palestinian lives? (This podcast episode was recorded on Monday afternoon, and since then civilian deaths in Gaza have continued to rise as Israeli airstrikes bombard the strip.) TheNew Yorkerreporters David Kirkpatrick and Adam Rasgon join Tyler Foggatt to discuss what they learned from speaking with Abu Marzouk, and how this conflict differs from what they have each seen in their many years of reporting on the region.
Share your thoughts on The Political Scene.
Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choicesTranscript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Discover Earth's ultimate untamed places with wilderness. With access to 6 million acres of private land |
| 0:07.7 | in eight African countries, wilderness offers intimate wildlife encounters and experiences that will |
| 0:13.0 | leave you changed forever. The accommodations are luxurious and stay true to the vibrant soul |
| 0:19.8 | and spirit of each destination and the trips are |
| 0:23.0 | meticulously planned from arrival to departure, making them perfect for a group, family or |
| 0:28.5 | solo travellers. Wilderness is among the leaders of conservation hospitality, with more than 60 |
| 0:34.5 | of the most highly awarded lodges in camps in Africa. |
| 0:43.0 | Wilderness is especially excited this year to focus on wellness, providing experiences that immerse you in beautiful places to restore your sense of self through nature. |
| 0:48.1 | To learn more and book your own wilderness adventure, go to wilderness destinations.com |
| 0:52.9 | slash women who travel. |
| 0:55.7 | eBay, it's a place to fall in love with new pre-loved vintage and rare fashion over and over |
| 1:01.6 | again. Your favorite designers, expertly authenticated. Yeah, eBay. Things people love. |
| 1:10.6 | So the headline of your piece is what was Hamas thinking? What was |
| 1:16.0 | Hamas thinking? Like, what did you learn? Well, it's a complicated picture. You know, from their |
| 1:22.8 | perspective, what they outline is a long list of grievances. |
| 1:33.1 | And then the next question is, well, so since none of these grievances are new, you know, |
| 1:39.3 | the settlements, the treatment of Palestinian prisoners, the management of the Alaksa Mosque, since none of these grievances are new, why now and why when an enormous retaliation was very foreseeable? |
| 1:48.2 | I think one of the more confounding factors was the fact that Hamas over the past several years had been trying to make accommodations with Israel. |
| 1:58.4 | Some in Israel are even talking about a rapprochement. |
| 2:01.9 | They had been undertaking indirect negotiations with Israel through Qatar and through Egypt, |
| 2:08.4 | through the United Nations, and basically trying to improve the living conditions in Gaza. |
| 2:13.8 | And I think they had very much convinced the international community, including the Israelis, that this is what they were interested in. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from The New Yorker, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of The New Yorker and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.