According to Mondoweiss, Hamas is set to launch its largest security operation yet against gangs collaborating with the Israeli army amid Israel’s continued ceasefire violations.
The Palestinian resistance movement Hamas is preparing to launch what officials describe as its “largest yet” security campaign against armed gangs and militias accused of collaborating with the Israeli army, according to exclusive information obtained by Mondoweiss from security sources inside Gaza’s Ministry of Interior.
Since the Gaza ceasefire came into effect on October 10, the resistance movement has conducted a series of raids targeting groups reportedly armed and financed by Israel, most recently disarming the Doghmush clan in Gaza City.
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A security officer told Mondoweiss that the upcoming campaign aims to “eliminate groups that continue to collaborate with the occupation army,” emphasizing that remaining militias “pose a direct threat to civil security and resistance operations.”
Militias Under Israeli Protection
The sources said the most prominent armed factions still active include the “Popular Forces” led by Yasser Abu Shabab in eastern Rafah and the “Popular Army” led by Ashraf al-Mansi in northern Gaza. Both are said to operate in areas still under Israeli military control.
The Interior Ministry official estimated that the number of gang members collaborating with the occupation “does not exceed a few hundred” across Gaza, excluding Abu Shabab’s force of roughly 2,000 members. “His militia operates east of Rafah, entirely under the protection of the occupation army,” the source reportedly said.
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Another senior security source told Mondoweiss that fewer than 80 members have been directly implicated in killings, kidnappings, or acts of sabotage, but that “interrogations and field evidence show these individuals were funded, armed, and assigned missions by the Israeli army.”
Israeli Funding and Operations
According to the investigation, interrogations of captured militia members revealed that Israel supplied the groups with confiscated weapons, vehicles, food, and cash, though it withheld advanced arms. “They carry Kalashnikovs, pistols, and modern four-wheel-drive vehicles,” one officer reportedly said. “But no heavy weapons—Israel doesn’t trust them that much.”
The sources also reportedly stated that the Abu Shabab militia has received “the lion’s share” of Israeli support. “We have recordings confirming direct assignments from Israeli soldiers to carry out kidnappings, killings, and torture,” the official said.
Local reports have linked Abu Shabab’s group to several abductions, including that of Dr. Marwan al-Hums, head of Gaza’s Health Ministry hospitals, on July 21, and the kidnapping of his daughter, a nurse, on October 2.
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According to Mondoweiss, Israeli media have indirectly confirmed parts of Hamas’ claims. The Israeli Haaretz cited army assessments acknowledging that Hamas has re-established control over areas vacated by Israeli forces and that “most local militias have been eliminated or disbanded.”
“The campaign is not over,” a security officer told Mondoweiss. “We continue to arrest collaborators and monitor their networks. The coming days will witness a security campaign that is the largest yet, in multiple areas across the Strip.”
(The Palestine Chronicle)
