Latest news with #AbuShabab
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Hamas's worst nightmare: Armed clans rise in Gaza, challenge terror group's grip on power
These clans act like armed militias, forcibly seizing food, looting warehouses, and shooting to protect their members from Hamas security forces. Armed clans are reasserting themselves in the Gaza Strip, challenging Hamas's authority, particularly in areas where the IDF is conducting operations and Hamas has lost control, senior IDF officials told Walla. Sources told Saudi-owned site Al Hadath on Sunday that Hamas has lost security control over the Gaza Strip, adding that thieves and gangs seize aid, loot homes, and terrorize residents. According to a senior IDF officer, these clans act like armed militias, forcibly seizing food, looting warehouses, and shooting to protect their members from Hamas security forces. The influence of these clans predates the current conflict, rooted in longstanding smuggling networks trafficking weapons, drugs, cigarettes, and electronic goods from Egypt and Israel. Over the years, Hamas reached understandings with some of these clans, occasionally even cooperating with them, particularly during the massacre and looting on October 7. Hamas's hold weakened further as the IDF carried out ground operations and divided Gaza. Following the ceasefire announcement, Hamas forces deployed convoys to both the north and south, aiming to reassert control. These forces responded harshly to defiant clans, employing arrests, torture, knee shootings, and even killings to quell opposition. The Abu Shabab clan, led by Yasser Abu Shabab of the Tarabin family, has emerged as a leading force. After being expelled from Rafah, the clan has operated aggressively in the north and south. Palestinian reports indicate that the group both secures humanitarian aid convoys and loots them. Hamas has accused the clan of collaborating with Israel. Another significant group is the Dughmush clan - also known as Dajmash - which hails from Tel al-Hawa and al-Sabra in Gaza City. This clan was previously involved in the kidnapping of Gilad Shalit and has a history of violent confrontations with Hamas. Its leader was killed last year amid allegations of ties to Israel. Security sources say most of these clans are motivated by a desire for power and wealth rather than ideology. They are exploiting Hamas's weakened position to expand their influence, sometimes proving to be as effective as Hamas itself. Other active clans include the Abu Tir clan, which operated in Khan Yunis and specialized in smuggling from Sinai; the Al Kashk clan, based in Gaza City and closely linked to local centers of authority; the Abu Risha clan, which was active in Rafah and maintained ties with Salafi groups; the Shawish clan, a relatively small but active group in Gaza; and the Baraka clan, which is affiliated with Fatah and operates primarily in Gaza City. Former security officials caution that as long as these clans remain armed, they will pose a threat to Hamas's authority. 'There is no vacuum in Gaza,' said one official. 'If Hamas gunmen are not present, clan members will try to impose their own order. Should a ceasefire hold, Hamas will have to confront this entrenched problem. If not, the clans will only grow stronger. They are not waiting for anyone.'
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Hamas-led groups execute four for looting aid trucks amid some Gaza dissent
By Nidal al-Mughrabi CAIRO (Reuters) -Hamas has executed four men for looting some of the aid trucks that have begun entering Gaza, sources familiar with the incident said on Monday, as a clan leader in southern Gaza issued a challenge to the militant group over guarding the convoys. One source said the four were involved in an incident last week when six security officials were killed by an Israeli airstrike as they were working to prevent gang members from hijacking aid trucks. "The four criminals, who were executed, were involved in the crimes of looting and causing the death of members of a force tasked with securing aid trucks," one of the sources told Reuters. Seven other suspects were being pursued, according to a statement issued by an umbrella group identifying itself as the "Palestinian Resistance". Humanitarian assistance began trickling into Gaza last week after Israel yielded to international pressure and lifted a blockade it imposed in early March that has left half a million people facing starvation, according to a global hunger monitor. Aid groups have said that deliveries have been hampered by looting, but they have blamed Israel for creating a situation in which hundreds of thousands of people have been driven to desperation by the blockade. Israel has accused Hamas of stealing aid, which the group denies, and the issue of control over the aid trucks has been hotly disputed. Israeli military officials say the security teams put in place by Hamas are there to take delivery of the supplies not to protect them, but it has provided no evidence of Hamas looting since it eased its blockade last week. Hamas, which took power in Gaza in 2007, has long cracked down hard on signs of dissent among Palestinians in Gaza but it has faced sizeable protests in recent months over the war and faced challenges to its control by armed groups of looters, some of whom it has punished by shooting them in the legs in public. Yasser Abu Shabab, a leader of a large clan in the Rafah area, now under full Israeli army control, said he was building up a force to secure aid deliveries into some parts of the enclave. He published images of his armed men receiving and organising the traffic of aid trucks. Hamas, which is unable to operate in the Rafah area where Abu Shabab has some controls, has accused him of looting international aid trucks in previous months and maintaining connections with Israel. On a Facebook page in his name Abu Shabab denies that he has acted as an alternative to the government or other institutions and rejects accusations of looting. On the page Abu Shabab is described as a "grassroots leader who stood up against corruption and looting" and who protected aid convoys. But a Hamas security official called Abu Shabab a "tool used by the Israeli occupation to fragment the Palestinian internal front". Asked if the U.N. was working with Abu Shabab, a spokesperson for the U.N. humanitarian agency OCHA said it did not pay anyone to guard aid trucks. "What we do is talk to communities regularly, build trust and engage with the authorities on the urgent need for more aid to come in through more routes and more crossings," the spokesperson said. (Reporting and writing by Nidal al-Mughrabi; Additional reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
Straits Times
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
Hamas-led groups execute four for looting aid trucks amid some Gaza dissent
CAIRO - Hamas has executed four men for looting some of the aid trucks that have begun entering Gaza, sources familiar with the incident said on Monday, as a clan leader in southern Gaza issued a challenge to the militant group over guarding the convoys. One source said the four were involved in an incident last week when six security officials were killed by an Israeli airstrike as they were working to prevent gang members from hijacking aid trucks. "The four criminals, who were executed, were involved in the crimes of looting and causing the death of members of a force tasked with securing aid trucks," one of the sources told Reuters. Seven other suspects were being pursued, according to a statement issued by an umbrella group identifying itself as the "Palestinian Resistance". Humanitarian assistance began trickling into Gaza last week after Israel yielded to international pressure and lifted a blockade it imposed in early March that has left half a million people facing starvation, according to a global hunger monitor. Aid groups have said that deliveries have been hampered by looting, but they have blamed Israel for creating a situation in which hundreds of thousands of people have been driven to desperation by the blockade. Israel has accused Hamas of stealing aid, which the group denies, and the issue of control over the aid trucks has been hotly disputed. Israeli military officials say the security teams put in place by Hamas are there to take delivery of the supplies not to protect them, but it has provided no evidence of Hamas looting since it eased its blockade last week. Hamas, which took power in Gaza in 2007, has long cracked down hard on signs of dissent among Palestinians in Gaza but it has faced sizeable protests in recent months over the war and faced challenges to its control by armed groups of looters, some of whom it has punished by shooting them in the legs in public. Yasser Abu Shabab, a leader of a large clan in the Rafah area, now under full Israeli army control, said he was building up a force to secure aid deliveries into some parts of the enclave. He published images of his armed men receiving and organising the traffic of aid trucks. Hamas, which is unable to operate in the Rafah area where Abu Shabab has some controls, has accused him of looting international aid trucks in previous months and maintaining connections with Israel. On a Facebook page in his name Abu Shabab denies that he has acted as an alternative to the government or other institutions and rejects accusations of looting. On the page Abu Shabab is described as a "grassroots leader who stood up against corruption and looting" and who protected aid convoys. But a Hamas security official called Abu Shabab a "tool used by the Israeli occupation to fragment the Palestinian internal front". Asked if the U.N. was working with Abu Shabab, a spokesperson for the U.N. humanitarian agency OCHA said it did not pay anyone to guard aid trucks. "What we do is talk to communities regularly, build trust and engage with the authorities on the urgent need for more aid to come in through more routes and more crossings," the spokesperson said. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
