EXCLUSIVE – Jihadist: Hamas Caught Attempting to Infiltrate Islamic State in Sinai

TEL AVIV — Hamas is acting to infiltrate the ranks of the Islamic State group in Sinai, a senior jihadist associated with IS claimed to Breitbart Jerusalem.

The jihadist source said that the fighters of Wilyat Sinai, the Egyptian branch of the Islamic State organization, have recently prevented more than one attempt by Hamas members to infiltrate the Salafi organization.

The source claimed that a number of Hamas members who fled to the ranks of IS in Sinai admitted during questioning that they were sent by the ruling movement in Gaza in order to infiltrate the organization and get close to the Gazans who joined IS in Sinai in order to learn who their jihadist contacts were in Gaza and Sinai, how they planned their exit from the coastal enclave, and more.

The jihadist also said that there were four Hamas members who reached Sinai three months ago and immediately began creating tension and division between IS fighters in Sinai until they were taken in for questioning by Wilyat Sinai where they admitted to being sent by Hamas.

The source claimed that Hamas ordered Mumtaz Dugmush, commander of the Army of Islam in the Gaza Strip, to contact IS members in Sinai and to stress that he already swore allegiance to IS and senior leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi last year. According to the source, the declaration of the Army of Islam commander was meant to serve as a source of information on jihadists who would seek assistance from the organization and its members in order to join IS in Sinai.

Dugmash’s announcement, according to the jihadist source, was also meant to move closer to IS in Sinai in order to create divisions within IS in Sinai while feeding Hamas intelligence.

The source added that two Hamas members who were suspected by IS of spying for Hamas managed to flee Sinai and return to the Gaza Strip. However, the source also said that Hamas’ efforts and Hamas’ cooperation with the Army of Islam won’t stop the flow of those joining IS in Sinai, “but it means we will need to be picky and cautious about who we recruit. But the drift toward the Mujahedeen won’t stop.”