Militias opposing Hamas rule in the Gaza Strip are attempting to expand their activity into the northern part of the enclave, according to a report published Saturday by the Saudi newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat.
Security sources within Hamas told the newspaper that the organization thwarted an attempt by an armed group to operate in the heart of areas under its control in Gaza City during the past week.
The incident reportedly occurred overnight between Wednesday and Thursday in the Nasr neighborhood in western Gaza City. According to the report, Hamas security forces set up checkpoints and conducted vehicle searches while pursuing a cell belonging to a militia led by Ashraf al-Mansi, a former officer in the Palestinian Authority security apparatus.
Al-Mansi is said to operate mainly in Jabalia and Beit Lahia in northern Gaza.
Hamas sources claimed that around midnight, gunmen opened fire at one of the checkpoints before fleeing the scene.
Second shooting and arrest
According to the report, members of the same cell opened fire again on Thursday evening, this time targeting a Hamas patrol.
Hamas forces reportedly launched a pursuit that led them to a house where the suspects had taken shelter. One gunman was arrested while the others managed to escape, apparently toward Beit Lahia.
Two firearms and ammunition were seized at the building.
Hamas investigators are now trying to determine whether the shooting was directed at a random patrol or whether it was an assassination attempt targeting a senior Hamas officer.
Sources quoted in the report said armed groups have in recent months been involved in the killings of two Hamas security officers in Khan Younis and in the Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza.
Claims of Israeli drone cover
Sources in Gaza also claimed the militias opposing Hamas have recently been operating under what they described as a “protective umbrella” of Israeli drones flying overhead.
However, the events in Gaza City were among the first reported incidents of this kind, while Israel’s military activity has recently focused on other fronts, including Iran and Lebanon.
Earlier this week, residents reported seeing jeeps mounted with heavy DShK machine guns traveling along Salah al-Din Street in eastern Khan Younis while unmanned aerial vehicles flew above them. The vehicles were later identified as belonging to one of the militias operating in the area.
Throughout much of the war in Gaza, and especially since the ceasefire in October, Hamas has intensified its campaign against armed militias and rival clans, killing or arresting some of their members.
Local sources say Hamas has interrogated some detainees in fortified detention facilities while simultaneously trying to persuade clan leaders to dismantle the groups and convince their members to surrender in exchange for what it calls a chance for “repentance.”
Militia leader claims expansion
In a conversation with Ynet, Rasan al-Dahini, the head of the Abu Shabab militia in southern Gaza, confirmed that his organization has recently expanded its activity into northern parts of the strip.
“This is a successful move,” he said.
Al-Dahini suggested that the model could eventually spread beyond Gaza.
“We, together with the free people of Al-Ahwaz, the revolutionaries of Iran and refugees from Lebanon, will finish what remains of the axis of evil,” he said. “This year will write the death certificate of all the forces of evil in the region.”
Asked whether he was concerned about Hamas pursuing him and members of his militia, he dismissed the threat.
“Hamas is too cowardly to do anything,” he said. “If Hamas had the ability to act, it would have done so when it still had 200 armed fighters in Rafah. But they were eliminated or arrested by us and by the army. We are the ones planning to eliminate what remains of Hamas.”