- Hundreds protested in Beit Lahia, demanding Hamas step down.
- Masked Hamas militants forcibly dispersed the crowd, assaulting protesters.
- Protests follow Israel’s resumption of military operations in Gaza.
- Open criticism of Hamas grows, but loyalists remain.
Hundreds of people have taken part in the largest anti-Hamas protest in Gaza since the war with Israel began, taking to the streets to demand the group step down from power. Masked Hamas militants, some armed with guns and others carrying batons, intervened and forcibly dispersed the protesters, assaulting several of them. Videos shared widely on social media by activists typically critical of Hamas showed young men marching in the streets of Beit Lahia, northern Gaza on Tuesday, chanting ‘out, out, out, Hamas out’.
Pro-Hamas supporters downplayed the significance of the protests and accused the participants of being traitors. The protests in northern Gaza came a day after Islamic Jihad gunmen launched rockets at Israel, prompting an Israeli decision to evacuate large parts of Beit Lahia, which sparked public anger in the area. Israel has resumed its military campaign in Gaza following nearly two months of ceasefire, blaming Hamas for rejecting a new US proposal to extend the truce. Hamas, in turn, has accused Israel of abandoning the original deal agreed in January.
Hundreds of Palestinians have been killed and thousands displaced since Israeli military operations resumed with air strikes on 18 March. One of the protesters, Beit Lahia resident Mohammed Diab, had his home destroyed in the war and lost his brother in an Israeli airstrike a year ago. ‘We refuse to die for anyone, for any party’s agenda or the interests of foreign states,’ he said. ‘Hamas must step down and listen to the voice of the grieving, the voice that rises from beneath the rubble – it is the most truthful voice.’
Hamas has been the sole ruler in Gaza since 2007, after winning Palestinian elections a year prior and then violently ousting rivals. Open criticism of Hamas has grown in Gaza since the war began, both on the streets and online, though there are still those that are fiercely loyal and it is hard to accurately gauge how far support for the group has shifted.