Gaza | With gangs against Hamas

From a distance, from above, the full extent of the destruction in the Gaza Strip becomes visible: satellite images show piles of rubble where houses once stood, people pushing through dusty streets to buy whatever was available in shabby shops, if they had the money.

Life in the heavily overpopulated, narrow strip of land between the Mediterranean, Egypt, and Israel hasn't been easy or pleasant for many years. Today, it's unbearable—because of the war raging since October 2023 between the Israeli government and Hamas, which has controlled the Gaza Strip since mid-2007. But also because this war is now colliding with the aftermath of what came before. The years-long blockade by Israel and Egypt, and the fact that Hamas invested almost all of its available money in its military buildup, has left the infrastructure dilapidated: For many years, seawater and sewage have been seeping into the groundwater, rendering the vast majority of it undrinkable. People have drunk it anyway. From time to time, the World Health Organization (WHO) or a human rights organization have warned that the Gaza Strip is in danger of becoming uninhabitable. This hasn't attracted much attention.

Now, however, satellite images show something else: In Rafah, on the border with Egypt, Israeli military bulldozers have begun leveling large areas, reports the news channel Al Jazeera. Almost simultaneously, Defense Minister Israel Katz announced the construction of a camp on the ruins of Rafah: Initially, up to 600,000 Palestinians would be housed there, with no possibility of leaving. Later, the entire population of Gaza would be relocated there, reports the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. The goal is to implement the emigration plan first floated by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump months ago.

It is very likely that the destruction, hunger and disease will soon be joined by the plague of crime.

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Katz calls this a "humanitarian city." Israeli opposition politicians, some media outlets, and former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert quickly found a term from the past for it: "concentration camp." The government's conduct of the war can no longer be explained to anyone, Olmert told the British Guardian.

Some commentators, however, consider this announcement a negotiating tactic. Talks about a ceasefire continue, with Trump and people close to Netanyahu repeatedly announcing that an agreement is close. However, this has not happened yet: Hamas is demanding a permanent ceasefire and a complete withdrawal of Israeli troops. Netanyahu, meanwhile, is visibly finding it difficult to enforce even a limited withdrawal within his coalition. His government is based on the support of an ultra-right electoral alliance and the tolerance of two ultra-Orthodox parties. And the right-wing radicals, in particular, have a dream: the reconstruction of the Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip that were evacuated in 2005. In this, they can also count on the support of some members of parliament from Netanyahu's own party, the Likud. Likud ministers can even be seen at conferences focusing on the topic of settlement construction in Gaza – unchallenged by Netanyahu. Because his coalition has such a shaky majority that he needs every vote.

In the Gaza Strip itself, attention is now turning to the work of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a company based in the US state of Delaware that operates four humanitarian aid distribution centers in Gaza. Violent clashes have repeatedly erupted there, killing hundreds. Sometimes Israeli soldiers open fire, sometimes Hamas fighters do it. The Israeli government has now opened another front and begun arming members of extended families.

These extended families have traditionally been a pillar of the power structure in the Gaza Strip. They wield immense social influence and have therefore been one of the reasons why Hamas has been able to remain in power to this day: Its leadership constantly sought reconciliation with other groups, managing to ensure that those critical of the organization at least kept quiet.

Now Netanyahu's government is trying to motivate these groups to fight against Hamas, even if they themselves oppose Israel. And not all of those receiving support belong to the extended family circle. Take, for example, the militia of Yasser Jihad Mansur Abu Shahab. There are many indications that they are now also collaborating with the GHF. But before the war, according to Egyptian investigators, the group was primarily active in drug smuggling from the Sinai Peninsula, where it collaborated with the terrorist militia "Islamic State." It is therefore very likely that the destruction, hunger, and disease will soon be joined by a plague of crime.