A ceasefire was supposed to be an opportunity to breathe.But in Gaza, these two words are a new sign: not the beginning of peace, but the beginning of the “purification.”
As soon as the Israeli troops withdrew, Hamas militants swaggered back into the streets. From ground patrols to public captures, the scene is more like a "civil war rehearsal" before a storm. In just five days, at least 33 people died in Hamas's clean-up operation. The smell of gunpowder did not dissipate, and gunfire rang again.
What is even more confusing is that on the one hand, the U.S. government says it wants to disarm Hamas, but on the other hand, it acquiesces in its use to "maintain order." Is it strategic tolerance or tacit connivance?
Hamas chooses to shoot instead of negotiating.
On a main street in the old city of Gaza, bullet holes left by previous rounds of clashes still remain on the wall, and new ones have been added these days.
Hamas militants in black clothes and guns patrol, standing outside the cafe at the corner of the street, as if they were waiting for someone to appear, as if they were defending something.
It is said to be "cleaning up gangs", but the actual action is more like a civil war staged in advance. The local family armed forces were named, and gunfights broke out one after another. Some people were dragged away from the street, while others fell directly at the entrance of the alley.
Hamas has not concealed the nature of the operation. In their statement, they directly named and killed 32 local gang members "and mentioned that six of their own members were sacrificed during the operation.
Who are these “targets”? do they really involve crime? the outside world has no confirmation. Especially in a faction like Gaza, a fragmented region of power, who is “band”, who is “opposition”, the boundaries are very blurred.
At first, people thought it was only a small-scale friction after the ceasefire, after all, the redistribution of power always needs some fluctuation.
Traditional forces like the Dogmoush family, which originally had certain local autonomy, have now become "targets". In southern Gaza City, a curfew was imposed overnight and every house was closed.
This approach looks like a restoration of order, but behind it is greater concern.Hamas knows that the Israeli withdrawal is only temporary and the real threat comes from within.
Once the local forces have the opportunity to grow, their dominance in Gaza may be shaken.Administrative means alone are not enough, it really targets the possibility of rebellion itself.
The Americans on the phone chose to be “dummy.”
The gateway to the Rafah border has not yet been fully opened, and a United Nations rescue car is slowly passing through the checkpoint. In Washington, on the other side, the Trump administration has caught up in contradictory statements.
In the past few days, he stressed that “Hamas must be disarmed,” and turned to the media, saying: “Hamas needs to maintain basic security at the moment.”
This is not the first time that U.S. policy has changed in the past few rounds of the conflict in Gaza, and the U.S. has always swung between “stability” and “reconstruction”.
The same is true this time. On the surface, it is to maintain order and prevent the situation from getting out of control, but once you look closely, you will find that it is actually acquiescent that Hamas will continue to control the grassroots level.
The United States is well aware of Israel's reluctance to allow the Palestinian Authority to enter Gaza. The Trump administration originally wanted to promote a "controllable" security structure, but in reality, no one else can play except Hamas.
This situation, no coincidence, is exactly the same as the "power window" after the past conflicts.
And this is not a mere security consideration.Trump's Middle East policy is clearly predisposed to the trading mindset, can solve with money without human resources, can compromise for stability without managing the idea.
For example, last year’s arms export conference to Saudi Arabia and the UAE, while talking about human rights, while signing a big deal, is logical.
So now the U.S. attitude, which appears to beining peace, is actually compressing the long-term strategy into a short-term “stop-blood”. they do not know how Hamasins order, nor do they not see the streams of the shooting videos, but simply choose “don’t talk first, don’t do bad things.”
The deal was executed like a bomb.
Outside Gaza City, ambulances honked one after another, but they couldn't enter the blockade area. The United Nations humanitarian convoy was stuck at a checkpoint two kilometers away, and the supplies could not be delivered, and the wounded could not afford to be dragged.
This happened on the third day after the ceasefire agreement came into effect. The agreement said "humanitarian aid is allowed," but the Israeli military blocked the Rafah crossing on the grounds that "security was not up to standard."
At the same time, the Hamas side did not remain on the sidelines. Armed unrelated, patrol instead strengthened. They publicly stated that unless the “Palestinian State Building Plan” is included in the framework of the agreement, we will not disarm. The word “armed” turned into “political code” and placed the bottom line directly on the negotiating table.
Guterres was also not silent.He made it clear at the UN conference that he was shocked by the deaths of civilians and called on all parties to investigate whether the laws of war were violated.
Look at the "20-point peace plan" proposed by Trump, the framework of the clause is clearly listed, but can involve critical issues.
For example: Where is Israel going to withdraw its troops? What should we do about the place, time and method of Hamas handing over the guns? None of this was written. Many diplomats privately complained that this plan is like a PowerPoint without execution instructions.
China and other countries have always adhered to the “two-state plan”, explicitly supported the establishment of a Palestinian state, and have repeatedly pushed for the landing of UN resolutions on international occasions.
But these efforts seem to be relegated to the secondary agenda in the current situation. Peace is seen as an option rather than a goal.
After fighting the foreign enemy, he went back to clean up his own home
At night, the radio station in Gaza broadcast a "public security notice" warning citizens not to go out at night and calling for cooperation with Hamas's "street security patrol". This sounded like a signal to restore order, but the residents knew that the real storm had just begun.
From the beginning of the national conflict, to the current internal cleansing, the shift in the situation was not sudden, but no one was willing to acknowledge its necessity.
Hamas was once a "resister" but now it has become a "controller"; local armed forces were once "potential allies" but now they have become "threats to stability."
It seems to be stabilizing the situation, but there are deeper considerations behind it. Hamas understands that as long as it has guns, people, and external acquiescence, it can maintain "de facto rule."
And the United States understands that as long as Hamas does not do too much, the situation will not get out of control to require them to take action.
So this “peace agreement” is more like pressing a pause key to the conflict, the surface is calm, the reality is flooding. The clear field will not be the last, the counterpolice will not be far away. Gaza is sliding into a “end of the war, clear the field, fight again” cycle.
Unless the fundamental issues are really put on the table, this scene will only continue to repeat itself, with people changing, venues and reasons changing, but the background color remains unchanged.
ended
Hamas's gunfire did not sound on the battlefield, but on its own streets. The silence of the United States is not neutral, but a realistic choice. The absence of peace is not because no one proposes it, but because no one wants to solve the problem with real knives and guns.
The ceasefire is just the surface, and the deep cracks are still expanding.If the game continues like this, the future of Gaza will only come back between the “stop” and the “restart” and can’t get out of the dead cycle.
Source: Foreign media: Hamas and tribal armed groups in shooting, many people killed
2025-10-14 16:50 · Reference news