Strategic Assessment

In a well-planned operation, Hamas broke through the wall between the Gaza Strip and Egypt on the night of January 22-23. The pictures published in the global media of masses of Palestinians streaming to the Egyptian side in order to buy goods and enjoy a taste of freedom, and the voluminous commentaries about the event have created an impression that a dramatic episode with far-reaching consequences, at least as significant as the fall of the Berlin Wall, has taken place.