It turns that Hamas had a veto in the diplomacy and grand strategy of the U.S., Saudi Arabia and Israel.
Those three countries have been — somewhat quietly, and at the urging of the White House — inching toward a three-way deal that could reshape geopolitics in the region and beyond. But their arrangement would have left the Palestinians in the cold. So Hamas, the most militant group representing Palestinians, decided to blow the whole thing up.
In the most literal sense. In a surprise attack, Hamas fired thousands of rockets from the Gaza Strip into Israel, killing dozens of Israelis and leaving parts of Ashkelon and other cities looking like Ukraine after a Russian missile barrage. Simultaneously, Hamas fighters infiltrated Israel by land, sea and air, taking Israelis hostage in their own homes.