New Delhi, Jan 29 : Over the last year and a half, dozens of Hamas terrorists have visited Pakistan and taken part in public events. The ISI has been welcoming of the Hamas leadership and has ensured good coordination with the members of the Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed.

Following the onslaught by Israel, Hamas has been largely weakened. Although the outfit is still capable of striking hard, but currently down due to the long drawn battle it fought with Israel. Many attempts at re-grouping and reviving the outfit have failed. This is largely because the Israelis are after them and will shoot down any attempt made to strengthen itself in and around Gaza.

When the Hamas leadership reached out to the ISI, the spy agency was more than willing to provide the outfit with the space to regroup. An Intelligence Bureau official said that training exercises are being conducted and newer recruits are flown into Pakistan. These exercises are conducted with the help of the Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed cadres.

The official also explained that Hamas is well aware that the Israelis will not target their camps in Pakistan. This gives them the benefit of carrying on their activities without the fear of being hit, the official also said. Indian agencies had signalled the threats that the presence of Hamas is a cause of concern for India.

Another official said that the presence of Hamas in Pakistan is not a direct threat, as they are unlikely to indulge in direct activity against India. However, the fact that they are training with terror groups that pose a direct threat to India is a concern.

When compared to the Jaish-e-Mohammed or Lashkar-e-Taiba, Hamas has more sophisticated capabilities. During these training exercises, Hamas cadres will share knowledge with the Pakistan-based terror groups. These groups will learn the art of carrying out more sophisticated attacks, and this is the danger that India faces, officials explain.

This bonhomie suits both Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, as both groups are still in a re-grouping phase. Both were hit hard by the Indian Armed Forces when Operation Sindoor was carried out. The Jaish-e-Mohammed lost a lot of its people, and its headquarters in Bahawalpur was destroyed.

The Lashkar-e-Taiba, too, lost several men in this operation. However, its biggest loss was when the primary training facility at Murdike was destroyed. Operation Sindoor was carried out to avenge the Pahalgam attack by the Lashkar-e-Taiba in which innocent lives were lost.

While Hamas has its own funding mechanism, the ISI has used the organisationâ??s name to collect funds and then divert them to the Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed. Under the garb of charity for Gaza, the JeM and LeT have collected crores of rupees. However, this money is not being spent on Hamas. All of it is being used to rebuild the facilities that both these Pakistan-based terror groups lost during the operation by the Indian armed forces.

Pakistan watchers say that this exposes the double standards of Pakistan. US President Donald Trump has invited Pakistan to be part of the US-led intergovernmental organisation, the Board of Peace. The purpose of this organisation is to promote stability and secure peace in Gaza.

Experts say that this was a bad move, since Pakistan is hosting Hamas and also providing them with all the facilities so that they can regroup and then wreck peace in Gaza.

/IANS