Neue anti-Hamas Proteste in Gaza
Im Gazastreifen ist es heute erneut zu Protesten gegen die Hamas gekommen:
For the first time in weeks, rare protests erupted Wednesday evening in the Gaza Strip, with hundreds of residents in Beit Lahia demanding an end to Hamas rule and the ongoing war.
Demonstrators chanted slogans such as “Yes to unity, no to terror,” “We want to live in peace” and “Gaza is humiliated,” referencing senior Hamas officials Osama Hamdan and Mahmoud al-Zahar by name.
Protesters also called for the reopening of border crossings, and children held signs reading, “We want to learn.” In an unusual development, clan elders — some affiliated with Hamas — were seen participating in the protest. According to eyewitnesses, Hamas sent members to redirect the protest's message toward ending the war, but they were driven out with curses by the crowd.
These demonstrations mark a renewed wave of dissent that first surfaced last month, when hundreds of displaced residents from Beit Lahia and Beit Hanoun marched toward Gaza City. That protest broke new ground in the coastal enclave, directly challenging Hamas narratives of “steadfastness” and remaining on Palestinian land.
Adham Salama, 44, a displaced resident of Deir Al Balah whose home in Rafah city was destroyed, said that while he agreed that a temporary truce was not enough, he also did not believe that Hamas was able to fight effectively any longer.
“We want any decision that could end the war but if it's a temporary ceasefire that leads to the resumption of the war, then we say no – we don't want temporary solutions,” Mr Salama told The National.
“Hamas doesn't have weapons now. Fifty per cent of Gaza has become isolated and the pistol or Kalashnikov is not a strategic weapon,” he said, referring to the Israeli military's strategy of cordoning off large areas of the enclave after fighting resumed on March 18.
“Militarily, Hamas is finished. And politically, it's finished too. Even its civil institutions have collapsed. Only small groups remain, those with the prisoners [hostages] and the movement abroad with its supporters. This is what remains,” he said.
Recent weeks have seen rare protests against Hamas, which has not tolerated any signs of opposition since it seized control of the enclave in 2007, to demand an end to the war.