Key Takeaways:
- Al Jazeera aired exclusive Hamas military footage and documents without explaining how it obtained them.
- Hamas shared the footage hours later, while Israeli military documents suggest a history of attempted Hamas influence over the network’s coverage.
- Al Jazeera has yet to explain whether Hamas authorized the release or influenced how the material was presented.
Hamas posted footage of its slain military commanders on Telegram shortly after Al Jazeera aired it on October 30. Al Jazeera has not explained how it obtained the recordings, or the Hamas military records it broadcast alongside them. Israeli military documents suggest Hamas has sought a say over the program’s producer before.
The Qatari network billed the Mohammed Deif episode of its investigative program “What Is Hidden Is Greater” as a showcase of secret documents and exclusive scenes. The episode aired tunnel footage of Hamas’s pre-war military leadership, all of whom Israel has since killed. It also presented what it described as minutes of a February 11, 2023, meeting of Hamas’s mini military council and an October 5, 2023, operational order bearing Deif’s signature. Producer Tamer Al Misshal promoted the episode on X on October 25, and Israel Hayom reported that a promotional video featured a “top secret document” attributed to Hamas’ military apparatus.
Neither the episode’s accompanying text nor the companion article explains how Al Jazeera obtained the material.
Material of this kind most plausibly reached the network in one of two ways: Hamas released it, or someone leaked it without the group’s approval. Hamas’ own publication of the footage on Telegram within hours of the broadcast makes it difficult to sustain the claim of a leak.
The program has aired Hamas material before. After its January 2025 episode on the October 7 attack, Shafaq News reported that Hamas had released the Sinwar footage shown in the broadcast. Ynet likewise described the episode’s new footage and interviews as material Hamas released. In its report on the latest episode, The Times of Israel stated that Hamas regularly releases footage via Al Jazeera. The Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center argued in February 2025 that the earlier episode’s details about Deif and Sinwar provided further evidence of close ties between Hamas and the network. None of these sources documented the delivery arrangements.
Documents the IDF released point to one possible channel. In October 2024, the IDF released what it described as a 2023 Hamas document recording a decision to establish an “Al Jazeera Phone,” a secure line Hamas could use to reach the network in classified communications and during emergencies.
Other IDF releases concern Al Misshal. In March 2024, the IDF disclosed what it identified as a 2022 Hamas document tied to Operation Breaking Dawn. The document called for contacting Al Misshal to ensure he obtained Hamas’ approval before broadcasting material he received from Islamic Jihad. In October 2024, the IDF released what it described as a 2022 document instructing Al Misshal to support the “resistance” in his Breaking Dawn coverage for “What Is Hidden Is Greater” and barring criticism of Islamic Jihad’s rocket capabilities. The reports do not make clear whether the two releases describe the same document. Even if authentic, the instructions would not show that Al Misshal received or followed them.
Al Jazeera has rejected the IDF’s allegations. The network told NewsGuard it “categorically denies the allegations of the Israeli military.”
Some of the episode’s material was not new. The Times of Israel noted that the image from the military briefing featuring Deif and other commanders had previously been published. Hamas’ military apparatus published footage of Ismail Haniyeh, Yahya Sinwar, and other commanders inspecting a rocket production facility on December 21, 2024. It is unclear whether the October 30 footage of Deif, Sinwar and Haniyeh at a rocket manufacturing site comes from the same visit. The Meir Amit Center’s February 2025 report described an order matching the date and attributed signatory of the October 5, 2023, order in the program’s January 2025 episode. Prior publication does not erase the exclusive claim, but it narrows what the network newly disclosed.
Hamas’ same-night Telegram post, its record of releasing footage through the program and on its own channels, and documents describing a dedicated line to the network all point to Hamas as the source. None of it establishes who transferred the material or on what terms. Al Jazeera can answer two questions it has so far left open: Did Hamas authorize this release, and did it shape how the network presented it?
Liked this article? Follow HonestReporting on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok to see even more posts and videos debunking news bias and smears, as well as other content explaining what’s really going on in Israel and the region. Get updates direct to your phone. Join our WhatsApp and Telegram channels!
© Divuach Ne’eman R”A, 2025
