Conflicts right out of Putin's playbook

IT IS no coincidence that Hamas launched their massive offensive into Israel on the same day as the birthday of Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

- ANDY PHILLIPS

October 7 - the day when Putin turned 71 - was also the 20th anniversary of his ascendancy to Russian President. And it was the day when Hamas launched a full-scale assault on Israeli territory from land, sea and air, as well as raining missiles down on Israel.

It came after Hamas leaders were issued a high-profile invitation into the Kremlin in March this year, while Ukrainian officials have claimed that Russian mercenaries working for the Wagner group have trained Hamas soldiers in warfare.

I am not the first person to suggest that the date of the attack was carefully chosen by Hamas leaders, akin to a gift to Putin and his Russian regime, planned to aid his strategic goals at the same time as retribution on Israelis. Putin would have known a backlash would follow.

In the aftermath of the attack on October 7, Western leaders were shown harrowing footage of atrocities by Hamas - including the brutal killing of civilians - amid the slaughter of more than 1,400 Israelis.