Hamas has secret cyber headquarters in Turkey – report

Hamas has a secret cyberwarfare and counter-intelligence headquarters in Turkey directed by military leadership in Gaza, British daily The Times reported citing Western intelligence.

The headquarters deals primarily with funding and coordination and was set up two years ago in Turkey’s most populous city, Istanbul.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is unaware of the headquarters’ existence, nor of Hamas operatives currently in the country, The Times reported sources saying.

According to the report, the headquarters is directed by Samakh Saraj, a senior Hamas member based in Gaza who reports directly to the Yahya Sinwar, Hamas’s leader in the Gaza Strip.

The secret headquarters are also reportedly responsible for the purchasing of equipment that can be used for the manufacture of weapons, and coordinating cyber-operations against Hamas’ enemies, including the Palestinian Authority in Gaza, and embassies of countries such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

It also oversees surveillance and interrogation – in some cases of those within Hamas’ own ranks suspected of disloyalty according to the report.