Ghazan demanded the end to 18 years of Hamas rule

When an Israeli air strike exploded in a building in the center of Beit Lahia on Monday evening, the agricultural community in the far north of Gaza was already on the brink of the abyss due to the Israeli evacuation order hours ago.

The events shook the city’s residents and mentioned the dangers of war between Israel and Hamas, but they also helped stimulate rare demonstrations against Hamas in Gaza. For three consecutive days, hundreds of people They walked Through the city, to demand the end of the war and the 18-year-old Hamas rule over Gaza-the public protests that spread to a number of other cities in the pocket of beating.

“Hamas needs to move away,” said Ahmed Al -Massari, 26, a resident of Beit Lahia who helped invite the demonstrations. “If not, the bloodshed, wars and destruction will not stop.”

While most of the demonstrations were small, it represents the most daring challenge of Hamas’s authority by the Palestinians in Gaza since Hamas’s attack on Israel in October 2023 and the war that followed, which reduced cities to the rubble.

They also embody the frustration of the Palestinians who live again A fatal and shattered bombardment After Israel and Hamas failed to reach an agreement to extend the ceasefire. They explain that at least some Palestinians have put their concerns about the possible revenge by Hamas, who governs Gaza with a heavy hand.

Mr. Al -Masry said: “We have nothing to lose.” “We have already lost our lives, our homes and money.”

Before the 2023 attack, Hamas brutally shocked the Palestinians protesting the miserable living conditions in Gaza and conducted a survey of the protest organizers. But during the latest protests, the internal security forces have largely extended to cracking. Analysts said this was likely a reflection of Hamas An accurate position with Ghazan And its low ability to mobilize the forces at the threat of Israeli air strikes.

“How can you face this movement? By force? This would cause greater anger,” pointed out Akram Atta, a Palestinian analyst from the northern town of Gabalia in Gaza. He added that Hamas may not be able to publish it.

But on Thursday, Hamas agents prevented Al -Haywat’s media coverage of the demonstration in Beit Lahia. The protest, which included hundreds of people, is still moving forward.

Hamas still has a base of supporters in Gaza. Some of them remained calm during the protests this week, while others tried to doubt social media about the motives behind the protests, claiming that they were serving foreign business schedules, without providing a reliable evidence.

The first protest took place in the Beit Lahiya around 4 pm on Tuesday. On the night before, community members sent a message calling on residents to go to the streets.

“The box invites you,” said a screenshot of the message with the New York Times. “Sufficient Wars. We want to live in peace.”

The message came shortly after the publication of Avichay Adrae, an Arabic spokesman for the Israeli army, was released for people to evacuate Beit Lahia on his novels on social media. It was not long before, an air strike was washed in the city.

When asked about the strike, the Israeli army said it was working against Hamas’s military capabilities, without dealing with the specified case. Israel accused Hamas of working inside the civilian areas in the wake of the October 7 attack.

In the interviews, the demonstrators said that they hope that Hamas would give up its control over Gaza and remove any reason for Israel to continue carrying out the attacks, imposing the end of the war.

“We cannot accept that we must all die in order to stay in power,” said Sherif Al -Bhaisi, 56, a resident of Deir Pala in the center of Gaza, who participated in a protest on Wednesday. Mr. Al -Buhaisi is an active in Hamas competitor, and worked as an official at Al -Azhar University in Gaza City before the war.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from Israel said that Israel will not end the war until the military wing and the government in Hamas were dismantled, while Hamas expressed its willingness to abandon the control of the civilian government, not its arms.

For Mr. Al-Bhaisi, there was an important element in the protests, which is the retreat of the idea-that carried by some Israelis-that all Gaza supported Hamas and terrorism.

“We confirm that we are a people who loves life and our children,” he said.

The protests included the participation of some of the Mukhtar, and local leaders in the cities and villages who hold large parts of their societies. Before March First in the Beit Lahia, a number of young people approached Mukhtar to secure support for the initiative, according to Mr. Al -Massari and Hassan Saad, a city resident. They said they offered their blessings.

“We say that we want to live in dignity,” said Hisham Al -Barawi, 64, who is chosen in the house of Lahia. “We want to live like anyone else.”

Nader Ibrahim The reports contributed.