"The hostage situation has shown that Hamas’ control over Gaza is not absolute, said Hans-Jakob Schindler, senior director of the Counter-Extremism Project, a policy institute based in Washington and Berlin.

Schindler said he believes Hamas enlisted the aid of the PIJ and organized crime groups in Gaza for the raid, but that the groups are competing when it comes to the hostages."

"Al-Ghandour had survived at least three Israeli attempts on his life and was involved in a cross-border attack in 2006 in which Palestinian militants captured an Israeli soldier, according to the Counter Extremism Project, an advocacy group based in Washington."

"Hans-Jakob Schindler, senior director at the transatlantic thinktank the Counter Extremism Project, says the situation is .terribly unclear'.

'It's important to note that Islamic Jihad and Hamas don't have a co-operative relationship - they're actually competitors,' he tells Sky News. 'So it's not entirely clear if Hamas can get Islamic Jihad to release any of the hostages it may be holding.

'And it seems it wasn't just them and Hamas involved in the 7 October attack.

'There's been a well-developed smuggling economy in Gaza for decades - long before Hamas took control - organised by networks of crime families.

'So it's possible hostages are neither under the control of Hamas nor Islamic Jihad - but these crime organisations.'"

"According to the Washington-based Counter Extremism project, in addition to being a key figure in the October 7 attacks , Ghandour has been behind a number of terror attacks against Israelis and survived at least two assassination attempts dating back to 2002 and 2012."

"'There’s been a well-developed smuggling economy in Gaza for decades – long before Hamas took control – organised by networks of crime families. So it’s possible hostages are neither under the control of Hamas nor Islamic Jihad – but these crime organisations,' Hans-Jakob Schindler, senior director at the transatlantic thinktank the Counter Extremism Project, told Sky News."

"Terrorism and extremism expert Hans-Jakob Schindler from the Counter Extremism Project (CEP) Berlin sees the first releases as a 'confidence-building measure between Hamas and Israel.' In his opinion, the negotiations will now become more difficult with each hostage: Hamas will demand that more Palestinian prisoners be released per hostage and the crimes committed by those held will also become more serious. Hamas will demand a very high price, especially for the release of hostages who belong to the Israeli military, said Schindler in the ZDF morning magazine."

"Al-Ghandour had survived at least three Israeli attempts on his life and was involved in a cross-border attack in 2006 in which Palestinian militants captured an Israeli soldier, according to the Counter Extremism Project, an advocacy group based in Washington."

'The group’s ideology blends Islamism and Palestinian nationalism and seeks the destruction of Israel and the creation of an Islamic state between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River...Hamas views the entirety of the land of Mandate Palestine—excluding the 80 per cent of Palestine that became modern-day Jordan—as an Islamic birthright that has been usurped. To that end, Hamas does not recognize Israel’s right to exist and has dedicated itself to violently seeking Israel’s destruction,' says think tank Counter Extremism Project (CEP) about Hamas."

"Gaza – The deaths of others are apparently more bearable when you have air conditioning and room service. While the war in Israel continues to escalate following the atrocities committed by Hamas and civilians fear for their lives, the leadership of the terrorist organization resides far away in luxury hotels. 'Hamas' top leaders have been in Qatar for years. They are accommodated very comfortably there and are having a good time,' says terrorism expert Hans-Jakob Schindler from the Counter Extremism Project (CEP)."