The C.I.A. has assembled a new task force to collect information on senior Hamas leaders and the location of hostages in Gaza, The New York Times reported late on Friday. The intelligence agency is providing its findings to Israel as it carries out its war against Hamas in Gaza, the paper said quoting U.S. officials who spoke on condition of anonymity.
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According to the report, locating the hostages, and developing information about their physical and mental conditions, was seen as a priority of the new task force
The decision came soon after the October 7 Hamas massacre in Israel at the order of National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and has been providing intelligence on senior Hamas leaders but not on mid-level operatives, because their removal from the scene would not change the course of the war but would pose a threat of civilian casualties, according to the paper. The New York Times notes that none of those at the leadership of Hamas in Gaza have been eliminated.
"Targeting Mr. Sinwar is not simply a matter of finding him. Mr. Sinwar is believed to be hiding in the deepest part of the tunnel network under Khan Younis in southern Gaza, according to U.S. officials. But he is also believed to be surrounded by hostages and using them as human shields, vastly complicating a military operation to capture or kill him," the report said.
The paper said no U.S. intelligence was provided to Israel ahead of its targeted killing of a senior member of the Hamas leadership Saleh al-Arouri, in Beirut last week.
U.S. officials told the Times that before Oct. 7, the U.S. generally relied on Israel for intelligence on Hamas but the Hamas attack on Oct. 7 showed that Israel’s intelligence collection "had significant weaknesses." And that American officials also raised questions about what Israel shared with the United States.