Hamas Seizes Command in Gaza: Crushing Alleged Collaborators as Ceasefire Strengthens

Hamas is regaining control of areas of Gaza that are not under Israeli military control as the truce goes into effect since it is still unclear how secure the area would be if the group were disarmed.
Hamas internal security officers were pictured on Saturday in a Gaza City street. In recent days, there have been several allegations of skirmishes between the group and rival tribes.
According to a Palestinian Home Front Telegram channel connected to Hamas, “the aforementioned were arrested, and a number of collaborators and informants also arrested in Gaza City, after proof was established regarding their involvement in spying for the enemy,” as well as “after verification of their involvement in the assassination of several members of the resistance,” on Sunday.

“The security services and resistance are also leading a comprehensive field campaign across all areas of the Gaza Strip, from north to south, to search for collaborators and informants and arrest them all” added the statement.
A video of a suspected collaborator being assaulted in an unidentified location was also shared on Saturday by Telegram channels connected to Hamas.
Hamas’ interior ministry posted pictures of men with guns and baseball hats yelling “police” in Gaza City interacting with residents, while other social media footage showed armed and masked Hamas members walking down a market strip in Gaza City.
Although Israel has weakened Hamas’s grasp on power, the organization has continued to keep a firm hold over Gaza throughout the conflict, as seen by CNN’s reports of the group killing and disfiguring alleged looters.


A one-week amnesty for members of criminal organizations “not implicated in killing or bloodshed” was announced by Hamas’ interior ministry on Monday.

However, several clans have weakened Hamas’ hold on Gaza in recent months, especially in the southern regions, with some militias receiving protection from the Israeli military.

One of the sons of top Hamas military leader Iman Aql, Muhammad Imad Aql, was killed in battles between clan storeholders and Hamas security personnel in Gaza City’s Sabra sector, according to social media outlets linked with Hamas.

Hamas forces had encircled the Dughmush family’s neighborhood as of Friday evening. In addition to numerous armed, masked men stationed near the Jordanian Hospital in Gaza City, CNN was informed by multiple sources that multiple members of the Dughmush family had been killed.

Conflicts were still going on, CNN was informed on Sunday.
The Popular Forces, an anti-Hamas group operating in southern Gaza, have disregarded requests to disarm. In addition to publicly challenging Hamas, which has stated that it will fight a so-called criminal outfit, they have carried out operations escorting assistance ships. Hussam al-Astal, one leader, wrote on Facebook on Saturday: “To all the Hamas rats, your rights have been taken away and your tunnels have been dismantled. Hamas will no longer exist after today, so repent now before it’s too late. “We are attempting to be an alternative to Hamas,” he said on the Israeli network Channel 12. They decide to engage in psychological combat. … they will use every effort to demonstrate that they are the only choice in the strip.” They are thought to have moved behind what is known as the “yellow line,” which is within southern Gaza, where Israeli forces are still present, according to one member of Popular Forces. In the upcoming weeks and months, there are still unanswered questions regarding how security and law enforcement would function in Gaza after the fighting.
Israel has continuously demanded that Hamas disarm themselves, but the group has continuously defied this demand.


“In recognition of the challenging position that Hamas Members who do wish to demilitarize find themselves in, any Hamas members committing to peaceful co-existence and to demilitarization of their arms will receive an amnesty,” reads item 15 of US President Donald Trump’s 20-point peace plan, which was unveiled last week.

Along with demilitarization, the Trump proposal states that “weapons will be demilitarized permanently by agreed and mutually accepted demilitarization” and that the demilitarization process will follow “parameters outlined by independent monitors.”

To replace Hamas, an International Stabilization Force (ISF) will subsequently be sent to Gaza right once, “and will train and provide’support to vetted Palestinian police forces.'”

However, beyond vague bullet points outlining how this process might take place, the practical aspects of what a security force will include and the arrangements for international supervision have not yet been finalized.

Given the circumstances, it may take months or more to build a security force in Gaza due to its operational complexity, and any demilitarization efforts will be difficult to carry out during a humanitarian crisis that, in the case of Israel and Palestine, involves significant infrastructure and building destruction.
Deploying (the ISF) in the necessary numbers will be a significant logistical problem and take some time, according to London-based research tank Chatham House.

“Issues of coordination, direction, and control of an untested multinational endeavour of the required scale will also be daunting,” it stated last week.

Security has suffered as a result of police force casualties during the two-year conflict in Gaza, which has made stealing of supplies the norm.

The new police force is anticipated to be trained and supervised primarily by Jordan and Egypt. It is unknown, however, when that force will enter Gaza’s streets or if Hamas’ internal security forces would be eliminated.