The Palestinian Islamic organization Hamas is both an armed group and a political movement. It is supported by a large proportion of the Palestinian population, primarily due to its leading role in resisting Israel.

Despite its deep roots in Palestinian society, there is a pervasive, false narrative about the origins of Hamas that is widely promoted, particularly in the West – including among some sympathetic to the Palestinian national liberation cause.

That narrative goes like this: Hamas was encouraged or even created by Israel to undermine the secular Palestine Liberation Organization of the late leader Yasser Arafat.

But this narrative is a myth that emerged from both anti-Hamas elements within Palestinian society and by Israeli intelligence.

Among the former is Muhammed Dahlan who – ironically – later worked closely with the Central Intelligence Agency and was instrumental in the failed, US- and Israel-backed coup against the Hamas government that was elected by the population in 2006.

The main claims to this narrative – and a more recent iteration used as a cudgel by opponents of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – fall apart upon closer scrutiny.