Editor’s note: This story contains graphic content.
A Discovery that Unveils Hamas’ Hidden Tactics: GoPro Cameras on Fighters
Recently, a booklet was found on the body of a Hamas fighter killed in Israel. The pamphlet contained detailed instructions for operating assault rifles, grenade launchers, and explosives. However, alongside these weapons of war were directions for something unexpected: GoPro cameras. It turns out that at least a half-dozen of the militants who breached the Gaza border and attacked Israeli communities had cameras strapped to their bodies, with the apparent intention of collecting propaganda material during the incursion. Now, Israeli first responders and intelligence officials are combing through videos from the devices of slain Hamas fighters.
The videos, some of which have been posted on social media, offer a harrowing first-person view of the final hours of the Hamas fighters’ lives and the death and destruction they caused during their unprecedented assault. They depict the slaughter of civilians, indiscriminate shooting in Israeli communities, and the taking of hostages — clear evidence of war crimes that undermine Hamas’ claims that their fighters did not enter Israel with the intent of killing civilians. Gina Ligon, a counterterrorism expert, who analyzed the footage for CNN, states, “I don’t think Hamas wanted us to see” the videos of the attacks on civilians. She adds, “That is not congruent with their narrative that they’re defenders of Palestine — that was terrorism.”
Simultaneously, the videos also reveal Israel’s unpreparedness for the attack, as large groups of Hamas fighters can be seen breaking through the Gaza border unopposed by the Israeli military. The clips were originally posted on the social media website Telegram by South First Responders, an Israeli volunteer group that claims to have been among the first to return to the communities attacked by Hamas. They explained that the videos came from GoPro-style cameras recovered from dead Hamas fighters. Analysts at research groups Bellingcat and the Centre for Information Resilience have geolocated several of the videos, and CNN independently confirmed their locations and geolocated additional footage.
CNN has reviewed numerous videos and will only publish snippets of longer footage that illustrate key elements of the attack. One set of videos documents the entire journey of a single Hamas fighter into Israel, from a dramatic early-morning border crossing to a rampage of violence through an Israeli kibbutz, to his apparent death after being shot by an unknown assailant.
The recovered body camera footage provides a stark contrast to the propaganda usually released by Hamas, which typically features military victories. The Israeli first responders’ videos show a fuller picture of the atrocities committed by the group, including the murder and hostage-taking of civilians. Analysts note that these fighters appear to be members of Hamas’ military wing, based on their equipment and clothing, and their footage contradicts the sanitized official videos posted by Hamas themselves. According to Aymenn al-Tamimi, a researcher with the Middle East Forum, Hamas does not want to be associated with brutality like the Islamic State. The recovered footage is more immersive, shot in a wide-angle perspective, resembling first-person shooter video games, which amplifies its impact on viewers. This new technique in propaganda, using footage captured by fighters during their attacks, has become a growing trend, accelerated by the rise of social media.
Peter Bergen, an author and CNN national security analyst, explains that the comfort of young terrorists with social media plays a significant role in this evolution of propaganda. He states, “This is just the next evolution of propaganda. They’re very comfortable with social media, and they live in a social media world.”
Other videos posted by South First Responders show the journey of a fighter from Gaza to the nearby kibbutz of Kerem Shalom, as well as attacks in other Israeli communities.
This shocking discovery provides valuable insight into the tactics employed by Hamas and sheds light on the realities of conflict in the digital age.
