The Hamas war against Israel as reflected in the poetry written by its leaders during the First Intifada and the early years of implementation of the Oslo Accords

Abstract

This article looks at Hamas's war against Israel through the lens of the poetry written by leading members of Hamas during the period 1987–1996 (from the founding of the organization through the early stages of the implementation of the Oslo Accords). Poetry is one of the means employed by Hamas to convey its political, social, and religious messages and ideology, which links its Islamic outlook with Palestinian nationalism. During the years covered by the article, dozens of the organization's senior members expressed themselves in this genre. The article looks at ten poets who were affiliated with Hamas leadership circles and were intensively engaged in writing poetry in those years. It describes the background to this activity, extracts the main messages and motifs presented in their verse, and examines the goals served by this lyrical composition in the organization's war against Israel.