Hamas attempted to convince Iran and Hezbollah to join its October 7 attack on Israel, according to a Saturday New York Times report, citing records of Hamas meetings captured by the IDF.
The original execution date for the attack, dubbed "the big project" by the terrorist group and planned for 2022, was postponed due to such attempts, according to the report.
In an attempt to persuade Hezbollah, the Hamas meeting records list, according to the NYT, the "internal situation" within Israel as a reason to advance toward an attack as well as normalization efforts between Israel and Saudi Arabia.
Hamas official Khalil al-Hayya planned to speak with former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, however, the records are unclear whether such a conversation occurred, the NYT reported.
According to the report, the senior Hamas official traveled to Lebanon in July 2023 to meet with Mohammed Said Izadi, a top Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commander, and ask for aid in striking "sensitive sites" in the first hour of the attack.
According to the records, the Iranian official noted Iran and Hezbollah's support but stated the Islamic Republic and the Lebanon-based terror group required more preparation time.
Hamas launched the attack without waiting for its two allies to get ahead of the deployment of Israel's new air defense system and upset normalization efforts with Saudi Arabia, the report claimed.
The report also noted that Hamas avoided conflict with Israel beginning in 2021 to demonstrate its intentions for calm.
Those in attendance at the meetings
Those who were in attendance at the Hamas meetings reportedly included Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar, Sinwar's brother Mohammed, then-head of the terror group's military wing, the Izzadin al-Qassam Brigades Mohammed Deif, and his deputy Marwan Issa.
Then-head of the terrorist group's political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, was also notified of the plans for the attack.
According to the NYT, the Hamas records were uncovered by IDF troops in January in a computer located in an underground command center used by leaders of the terror group in Khan Yunis.