Gazans Protest Against Hamas

Hundreds of Gazans protested against Hamas in the north of the Gaza Strip yesterday, demanding an end to the war. Social media posts showed people chanting "Hamas out" in a rare public show of opposition to the terrorists who sparked the war with their 7th October 2023 attack on Israel.

Northern Gaza is one of the most heavily damaged areas in the Strip. Many of the buildings in its densely populated areas have been reduced to rubble and most of the people have moved several times to escape the fighting.

Hours after the first protest broke out, a second started in the Jabalia refugee camp, where dozens of demonstrators burned tires and chanted "We want to eat."

As news of these initial protests spread, more broke out across the Strip, including one in the southern city of Khan Younis. Protesters there called for an end to the fighting and were filmed chanting "down with Hamas."

It is difficult to gauge the number of people who took part in the protests because many of the videos on social media only show part of what was taking place.

In normal circumstances, Hamas maintains tight control over media in the Gaza Strip, which makes it difficult to get independent reports on events. However, since Israel renewed its military campaign on 18th March, terrorists have returned to hiding in tunnels and are no longer able to hold parades in the streets, as they did during the recent ceasefire.

The Gazans are very brave to protest against Hamas in this way, because similar protests against intolerable living conditions in March 2019 were put down with brutal force by Hamas, drawing harsh criticism from humanitarian organisations.

UPDATE 27th March

The Times of Israel reports that thousands of Gazans marched on Wednesday, in a second day of anti-war protests, many of them ’chanting against Hamas in a rare display of public anger against the ruling terror group.’

Israel’s Defence Minister urged more civilians to join the protests, warning that the renewed military campaign against Hamas will increase if the terrorists do not release the remaining 59 Israeli hostages.