The Islamist terror group Hamas has been regrouping by relocating its operations to Europe and activating sleeper cells. On Jun. 6, Greek authorities arrested a Hamas terrorist operative in Agios Nikolaos, a famous tourist resort on the island of Crete. The suspect was preparing a deadly attack on Israeli targets with the declared goal of 'putting Hamas back on the map'.

The arrested terrorist belongs to a terrorist cell that includes at least seven members, five of them stationed in Cyprus, another EU member-state in the Mediterranean. The cell was activated and preparing attacks on Israeli targets. Israel's Foreign Ministry applauded the disbanding of the terror cell commenting on X that 'from Greece to Cyprus, authorities continue uncovering Hamas-linked terror activity on European soil'.

The Arrest In Crete

The terrorist apprehended, a 37-year-old Palestinian Arab from the Gaza Strip, was arrested after a successful joint operation codenamed "Odin" by Greece's National Intelligence Service (EYP) and the counterterrorism unit. After questioning, he admitted being a member of Hamas, having contacts with other individuals and participating in activities for carrying out a terrorist attack against Israeli targets.

On the following Monday morning, the terrorist was charged with four felonies: establishment and participation in the Hamas terrorist organization, training in the manufacture and use of explosives to carry out terrorist acts, traveling to monitor training for terrorist acts and criminal support for terrorist purposes. In his apartment in Athens, the authorities found all necessary equipment to produce bombs.

He was still waiting to receive some chemical agents after an online order. The terrorist claimed he did not yet know his target and was waiting for instructions from his handler.

Scenarios include an attack with explosives against the Israeli cruise ship Crown Iris that often visits the port of Agios Nikolaos or Israeli targets in Cyprus. Other European countries would be targets as well, according to statements by the Greek Minister of Citizen Protection.

Hiding In Plain Sight

The Hamas terrorist arrived in Greece in July 2023 posing as a refugee from the Gaza Strip. He received international protection status and relocated temporarily to Germany, where he joined local Hamas networks. He returned to Greece in the summer of 2025 moving between Athens and Crete during the summer season.

Over the last period, he had been employing a cover as an electrician at a luxurious hotel in Agios Nikolaos, Crete. According to local inhabitants, he maintained a low profile, residing along with three other Palestinian Arabs in a motel paid for by his hotel employer. Still, the terror cell was beginning to advance its terrorist plan.

According to Greek media, in October 2025 he was questioned by the Greek Police along with four other Palestinian Arabs for participating in an anti-Israeli demonstration at the port of Agios Nikolaos during the arrival of Israeli cruise ship Crown Iris. The five individuals were released, as no evidence was found against them. Then new intelligence started to pour in, leading to the disbanding of the terror cell and his arrest.

Hamas' International Network Regroups

The Greek authorities put the Hamas operative under surveillance, especially after cooperation with the German Intelligence Service (BND) regarding his residence in Germany, where he met with Hamas members. Then, intelligence from Cyprus, where a Hamas cell was disbanded in the previous weeks, led to his identification and arrest.

In late May, acting on a lead by Israeli intelligence, Cypriot law enforcement authorities had arrested four Palestinian Arabs following credible intelligence on their activities and discovering material that could be used in the manufacture of explosives. One of the terrorists, aged 38, had entered the Republic of Cyprus through the Turkish-occupied northern part of the island. During the investigation, authorities identified a phone number as a key link in the terrorist network, which led to Crete, Greece, where the arrested member of the cell was residing.

The Cyprus Cell

The Cyprus-based group was coordinating with Hamas operatives planning to attack IDF soldiers in the military base Anatot, near Jerusalem. The terror cell was receiving money through an international network. There are at least two more members at large in Greece and Cyprus.

"Hamas' networks in Cyprus operate as flexible hubs of logistical support and operation control using the island's geographical proximity to Lebanon and Israel. Hamas is using Cyprus to transport weapons, for digital communications and preparing attacks.

Cypriot authorities cooperating closely with Greece, Israel, and German intelligence agencies have proven effective in disbanding the terrorist networks, especially as there is a large number of Israelis residing in Cyprus. A greater emphasis has to be given to the way Hamas networks use Turkey's occupation of the northern part of Cyprus to infiltrate the EU", Marios Poullados, News Director of major Cypriot media outlet Sigma Live, told the IPT.

The Malaysia Connection

The handler and military trainer of the terrorist cell is a top-ranking Hamas official residing in Malaysia who has been fully identified by Greek intelligence services. According to Greek authorities, the Malaysia-based handler was in constant communication with the terrorist cell operating in Greece and Cyprus.

At least three members of the terrorist cell had received training in a Hamas camp in Malaysia, making explosive bombs with trade materials. The terrorist arrested in Greece visited Malaysia two times, the last time in August 2025, residing for at least 10 days. It was during this period that the terrorist cell received training and that the operational plan to move forward with the Greece-Cyprus cell was finalized.

Malaysia, a Muslim majority country, does not have diplomatic relations with Israel and has become a safe haven of Hamas. The ties between Hamas and Malaysia go back to at least the 2010s; Israeli intelligence service Shin Bet had disclosed that a Hamas terror cell had received advanced training in Malaysia. In 2010, Hamas had sent 15 men to the Asian country for a weeklong paragliding training; Hamas used paragliders to infiltrate Israel during their Oct. 7, 2023 deadly attack.

In late 2024, there was a new wave of Hamas terrorists heading to Malaysia, after the terror group's leadership was asked to leave Qatar. Even this April, a Hamas delegation including leading members, visited Malaysia, meeting local officials.

A New Modus Operandi For Hamas?

The disbanding of the Hamas cell in Greece and Cyprus shows that Hamas is changing its modus operandi targeting Israelis abroad. Hamas has been able to maintain its transnational networks aided by lax European asylum and migration legislation and by using neighboring countries, such as Turkey, as safe havens and transit routes.

"The neutralization of a Hamas-linked operational cell in Greece and Cyprus exposes a sophisticated, asymmetric proxy campaign that has effectively upgraded from localized regional conflict to hard kinetic warfare inside Europe. The cell was disrupted through a reactive, multi-layered intelligence pipeline initiated by U.S. and Israeli agencies, which first systematically dismantled interconnected network nodes in Cyprus before the data trail finally trickled down to Greek security services.

"Stripped of its primary financing and with its core leadership eliminated, Hamas lacks the independent infrastructure to sustain global operational pipelines, such as the specialized training programs traced back to Malaysia in this case", Alexandros Niklan, security analyst at Geopolitics and Daily News, told the IPT.

Beyond The Cell

What emerges is a transnational network including Malaysia, Turkey, and Pakistan. The three countries have created a global Islamic television channel that advances anti-Israeli rhetoric.

Malaysia acts as an operation base for Hamas members. Pakistan's intelligence agency (ISI) also maintains an active presence in Malaysia using the country as a base to support Kashmiri jihadist groups in India and coordinates with Hamas.

Turkey remains an important supporter of Hamas, while it facilitates the unhindered movement of terrorists into the EU through its occupation of the northern part of the Cyprus Republic, as it happened in this case.

A Widening Front

As Israel is engaged in its struggle against the Islamist regime of Iran and the terrorist networks of Hamas and Hezbollah, efforts to dismantle the Islamist terrorist networks are accelerating in the greater region. The danger of Hamas relocating its operations in EU countries cannot be overstated. In this context, coordination of EU intelligence and security agencies remains a priority, as successfully manifested in the case of Greece and Cyprus dismantling the Hamas terror cell.

IPT Senior Fellow Ioannis E. Kotoulas (Ph.D. in History, Ph.D. in Geopolitics) is Adjunct Lecturer in Geopolitics at the University of Athens, Greece.

Reposted from the International Project on Terrorism.