"Hamas has ability to rebuild if circumstances allow, expert Hans-Jakob Schindler tells DW
Hans-Jakob Schindler, senior director of the Counter Extremism Project, has told DW that the ceasefire deal is "a victory" for the hostages and Palestinian civilians in Gaza.

However, Schindler said the Hamas command and control structure, and its tunnel network, had been severely degraded. "

“Mr. Schindler, the hostage deal has barely been announced and there is already a dispute between Hamas and Israel. What else could cause the agreement to fail? “Hamas wants to decide alone who will be released from Israeli prisons in return for the release of the hostages. Israel cannot agree to that.” What speaks against it?“ No government would allow itself to be dictated to as to which prisoners it would release and which it would not. If there is no agreement on this issue, an agreement could still fail. But I do not expect that to happen. The outcome of the negotiations is basically a given…” Hans-Jakob Schindler is Senior Director of the international Counter Extremism Project and heads its office in Berlin.”

“Qatar's prime minister announces that a Gaza truce deal between Israel and Hamas has been agreed. Thousands of Gazans reacted to the news with jubilation. The deal will go into effect as of January 19. Phase 1 of the deal entails 33 hostages being released by Hamas over a six-week period. Israel says some issues are to be resolved with a vote expected on Thursday. Here are the latest developments from Israel, Gaza and the wider Middle Eastfrom January 15 into January 16… While the first phase of the ceasefire deal is not "a problem," the second one will be "tough," counterterrorism analyst Hans-Jakob Schindler told DW. "Because when you are in the second phase, you have to think about the third phase, that is sustainable ceasefire, the rebuilding of the Gaza strip," he said.”
 

“Hamas is down in the Gaza Strip but not out. Hamas has been traying rebuild itself in Gaza under a new leader. The new leader is Mohammed Sinwar, a senior Hamas commander the younger brother of slain former Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar… Before the war elevated him to his current role, Mohammed was the Hamas’ head of logistics and manpower and one of the top commanders of Hamas’s military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, according to the think tank Counter Extremism Project (CEP).”

"From Hans-Jakob Schindler's point of view, the fact that Hamas decided to publish Liri Albag's video in such a sensitive situation can be explained primarily by negotiating tactics. "With such videos of the hostages, Hamas always aims to put pressure on the Israeli government through their families and the public in order to persuade it to make concessions in the negotiations," says the senior director of the international Counter Extremism Project.”

""The internal UN inquiry was wholly inadequate and its conclusions complacent. A great deal more evidence has emerged since then," said Edmund Fitton-Brown, the UK’s former ambassador to Yemen, who is now a counter-terrorism expert with the New America think-tank in New York.

“The UN simply claims that UNRWA is irreplaceable, without making any attempt to address concerns about it and introduce reforms,” he added."

“Egypt has proposed a two-day truce in Gaza as a prelude to a longer cease-fire. President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi called on Hamas to free four of the Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. He proposed more negotiations to follow that release within ten days.
Meanwhile, Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry said Israeli strikes killed at least 45 people, mainly in the north of the strip. UN Chief Antonio Guterres said he was shocked by what he called the "harrowing levels of death, injury and destruction." Egypt proposes temporary truce in Gaza. DW speaks with Hans-Jakob Schindler, Middle East security expert and Senior Director at the Counter Extremism Project in Berlin”

"According to the experts of the Counter Extremism Project (CEP) France and Qatar’s relationship deepened in 2024 with a €10 billion investment agreement, marking a strategic partnership. While the partnership boosts the French economy, particularly in luxury, sports, and real estate sectors, it raises concerns about Qatar’s influence on French policies. Qatar’s financial ties to Islamist groups like Hamas complicate the partnership, especially amid the ongoing Gaza conflict. Experts claim that Qatar’s growing leverage can affect France’s foreign policy stance, particularly as protests and public opinion in France grow increasingly pro-Gaza."

CEP Senior Director Dr. Hans-Jakob Schindler quoted: "Another source of income for Hezbollah is criminal business - for example, extortion of Lebanese businessmen abroad. "By repeatedly reminding Lebanese businessmen abroad, but also Lebanese communities, that a fee must be paid for the good cause," explains Schindler. There are some "who do it voluntarily, others who don't - but in the end you have to pay.""