A New York Jew living in Israel and a longtime Hamas spokesman who was born and raised in Gaza had an unlikely partnership for 17 years, communicating behind the scenes while the Middle East peace process was underway.
Gershon Baskin, 67, an Israeli peace activist, and Ghazi Hamad, 59, Hamas’ current deputy foreign minister who joined the party when it was founded in 1987, have been communicating since 2006.
They were originally brought into contact to secure the release of Israeli soldiers in exchange for 1,000 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prisons.
Over the years, they maintained a secret back channel through which each could share their frustrations with the other side and gain insight into the mind of their nemesis.
But after the October 7 Hamas massacre, any relationship between the two collapsed as Hamad’s views appeared to have hardened as he publicly called for such atrocities to be repeated in the future.
Gershon Baskin, 67, a New York Jew who lives in Israel, has been in contact with the longtime Hamas spokesman for the past 17 years
Ghazi Hamad, 59, now Hamas’ deputy foreign minister, joined the party when it was founded in 1987
“I think you have lost your mind and you have lost your moral code,” he wrote to Hamad in a message obtained by The New York Times.
“I never want to speak to you again,” Baskin said.
Baskin initially spoke to Hamad over the phone and was charmed by his demeanor: Hamad insisted on speaking Hebrew rather than English or Arabic. “I like speaking Hebrew,” he told him.
Incredibly, communication between the two survived round after round of violence between Israel and Hamas and helped resolve several conflicts, according to the New York Times.
The two continued to communicate after the October 7 massacres, but after Hamad gave a hardline interview on October 24, Baskin realized he would never speak to him again.
The two first came into contact when Israel pushed for the release of 19-year-old soldier Gilad Shalit.
Baskin first had a phone conversation with Hamad in 2006, but their relationship continued for 17 years through secret text messages between the two
After the October 7 massacre, Hamad’s views appeared to harden, advocating for similar acts in the future
Israel invaded Gaza, and when Hamas wanted to reach a ceasefire, it was unable to contact the Israeli leadership directly. Instead, they used the services of Baskin, a well-known Israeli peace activist.
Over the years, the couple became skilled at mediation.
Baskin became familiar with Arab sensibilities after working in an Arab village and leading a research group that proposed solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and occasionally acted as a mediator.
Meanwhile, Hamad was sentenced to five years in an Israeli prison, where he also met Israelis who were learning Hebrew and English.
After his release, Hamad wrote and edited various Hamas-run newspapers and was considered a moderate.
Baskin also wrote a book called “The Negotiator” in which he discussed his dealings with Hamas.
Through dialogue between Hamad and Baskin, Shalit was released in exchange for 1,000 Palestinians imprisoned in Israel.
“I’m pretty sure that if Hamad were a much senior leader of Hamas, he would eventually focus on recognizing Israel and peace,” Baskin suggested in his 2013 book.
Ghazi Hamad insisted Israel gave them “no choice but violence” and boasted that the killing of 1,400 Israelis in their homes or fleeing a festival had “destroyed the myth of Israel as a military superpower.”
When Hamad then called for the complete annihilation of Israel, Baskin had no choice: their relationship was over
Over the years, their relationship strengthened, occasionally rocked by waves of violence between Gaza and Israel.
“Gershon, your good friend,” Hamad once wrote in the midst of another round of violence. “But I feel very sad and upset and sometimes feel like I can’t say words.”
Five years after Shalit was brought into contact, he was finally released in October 2011.
Senior Israeli intelligence officer David Meiden says the soldier’s release would not have been possible without years of back and forth – and trust – between Baskin and Hamad.
Although the two men remained in contact, they were unable to negotiate further hostage takings, an exchange or a long-term ceasefire.
It wasn’t until the two discussed what happened after last month’s massacre that Baskin realized something had changed within Hamad, who had criticized the terror group in the past.
Two weeks after the terrorist attacks, Hamad appeared to justify the attacks simply as a logical consequence of years of ongoing Israeli aggression.
Hamad boasted that the terror group “showed that Israel is defeatable” and that killing Israelis in their homes or fleeing the festival had “destroyed the myth of Israel as a military superpower.”
He dismissed the heartbreaking toll of people killed in the Israel-Hamas war – the deadliest and most destructive of the five wars the two sides have fought since 2007 – as a “necessary price in blood.”
A man carries the body of a child killed in Israeli airstrikes in Khan Yunis, Gaza, earlier this month
Above, in photos released by the IDF, a group of Israeli soldiers are seen in the Gaza Strip
Hamad claimed that “everything.” [Hamas] “It is justified” and declared that “we are the victims” as he vowed to expel Israel from what he claimed was Palestinian land.
Declaring that the terror group was ready to pay the ultimate price, he said: “We are a nation of martyrs and we are proud to sacrifice martyrs.”
He boasted that the killing of 1,400 Israelis was a “victory” for Hamas.
“October 7 was a victory: we destroyed the myth of Israel as a military superpower,” Hamad said.
“There are countries that are willing to enter into security agreements with Israel because they are convinced that it can withstand Iran or other threats,” he continued.
“Instead, Hamas has shown that Israel is defeatable. ‘We couldn’t do it for free, but we are ready to pay again.’
In another interview, Hamad said that “we need more” allies, including Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Through dialogue between Hamad and Baskin, Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit was released in exchange for 1,000 Palestinians imprisoned in Israel. Left in the picture: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak. That’s right, his father Noam Shalit
Finally, five years after they were brought into contact with each other, Baskin and Hamad worked to secure Gilad Shalit’s release in October 2011
Footage shows IDF destruction of tunnels in Beit Hanoun, Gaza
View of a burned-out area of a destroyed house in Kibbutz Kissufim in southern Israel after the deadly attack by Hamas gunmen from the Gaza Strip on October 7
“Hezbollah is now working against the occupation,” Hamad said from Beirut. “We appreciate that. But…we need more to stop the aggression against Gaza…We expect more.”
He criticized what he said was the hypocritical attitude of the international community, which had widely condemned the killing of Israeli civilians in Hamas’s first attack but, in Hamad’s view, had given Israel a “license to kill” civilians in Gaza in response.
Hamad said Hamas, which has so far released four of more than 220 hostages after mediation from Egypt and Qatar, was “very open” to talks about releasing more hostages.
He made no apology for the high number of civilians killed by Hamas militants in Israel or for the rising civilian death toll in Gaza.
Hamad said it refocused the world’s attention on the Palestinian cause and exposed the cracks in Israel’s iron facade.
“There is no room now to talk about peace with Israel or about a two-state solution or about coexistence,” he said.
Hamad then called for the complete annihilation of Israel, leaving Baskin no choice: their relationship was over.
Although there were no specific reasons why Hamad suddenly hardened, historian Azzam Tamimi, who knows Hamad, said he believes the Hamas spokesman may have lost family members and friends in recent Israeli attacks.
“Suddenly he lost family members and many of his friends. “That’s probably the problem,” Tamimi said.
“He expressed truly sincere feelings.” “No one should be under the illusion that someone so high-ranking Hamas member is willing to recognize Israel’s right to exist,” he added.
Perhaps he was shocked by the destruction wrought by the Israeli counterattack – and perhaps Hamad was never quite as moderate as Baskin wanted to believe.