The killings began within hours of the ceasefire in Gaza, as forces loyal to Hamas moved across the enclave, hunting for enemies.
Using ambushes, special units and intelligence networks, they tracked alleged collaborators with Israel and members of armed gangs who have set themselves up as rivals to Hamas.
Some have been killed for stealing aid. Others, fearing severe punishment, have surrendered to Gaza authorities or Hamas factions. Suspects have been taken before kangaroo “field courts” to face justice.
“Everything can be forgiven,” said one official from Gaza's Interior Ministry. “Except for collaboration with the occupation and harming our people’s lives. For that, the campaign is relentless.”
With US President Donald Trump's initial ceasefire deal in place, the campaign soon spread across Gaza from Khan Younis in the south to Gaza city and Beit Lahia in the north – even amid increasing international hope for peace in the Middle East and an opportunity to rebuild Gaza from the ruins of Israeli bombardment.
Supporters of the crackdown say it is about restoring order and chasing down those who exploited the chaos of war. A power vacuum left by Israel's offensive gave rise to organised militias led by figures such as Yasser Abu Shabab and Al Astal clan, who took to patrolling neighbourhoods and clashing with Hamas. Israel admitted working with some of the gangs.
“This campaign isn’t about restoring Hamas’s political control,” the Interior Ministry official told The National. “It’s about restoring safety, making sure people can sleep in their homes without fear after two years of unimaginable war.”
The drive has been condemned by the US and Palestinian officials, who raised the alarm about violence spreading "outside the framework of the law and without fair trials". The Trump peace plan states clearly that Hamas must not have “any role” in governing postwar Gaza.
Instead, it envisages day-to-day affairs being handled by a committee of Palestinians, which in turn would be supervised by an international “Board of Peace” led by Mr Trump. The crackdown has, therefore, raised fears that the peace process is in jeopardy.
In recent days, dozens of armed clashes between Hamas-affiliated security units and local militias have broken out. Several members of Gaza's internal security forces have been killed or wounded during operations. Officials said that it was a heavy but necessary price to pay to restore order.
Another security source described how specialised units have taken the lead in what he called a complex internal war. “Some collaborators are hiding inside zones still controlled by the Israeli army,” the source told The National. “We go after them anyway.”
He said the suspects included people who used vehicles under Israeli protection to fire at others. In such cases, Hamas units “neutralise” the threat immediately.
Other missions focus on gathering intelligence and arrests. Once detained, suspects are brought before so-called field courts, a wartime judicial process used when Gaza’s regular courts are unable to function.
Crackdown condemned
The US has protested against the Hamas crackdown. In an unusual intervention, Admiral Brad Cooper, who leads the US Central Command in the Middle East, appealed directly to the group to “immediately suspend violence” and seize the “historic opportunity for peace”.
The killings have also been condemned by the Palestinian Authority, a rival of Hamas that exercises some control over the occupied West Bank. The PA said the violence showed Hamas's “determination to impose its authority through force and terror, at a time when the people in Gaza are enduring the hardships of war, destruction and siege”.
The PA is dominated by the Fatah faction, which lost control of Gaza to Hamas in a brief civil war in 2007. The Trump plan says the PA could eventually take over control of Gaza, but only after a reform programme that has been talked about for years.
For many in Gaza, the Hamas campaign has revived painful memories of factional violence. But Husni Al Mughni, head of the enclave's Supreme Council for Tribal Affairs, said most tribal leaders supported the crackdown, within limits.
“Gaza’s people lived through hell during the war,” he told The National. “They starved, they were besieged, and some of our own sons, collaborators and outlaws, made their suffering worse. Holding them accountable is both a religious and national duty.”
Mr Al Mughni acknowledged that Hamas factions had carried out executions of convicted collaborators. He said there was “broad tribal and national backing” for restoring a sense of justice, but warned against revenge killings and excesses.
“Punishment must not become chaos,” he added. “Those executed had committed heinous crimes, stealing aid lorries, blocking roads, spreading fear, collaborating with the occupation, killing innocents. But justice must not destroy the unity we are trying to rebuild.”
He confirmed that the tribes had withdrawn protection from families proven to have collaborated with Israel, clearing the way for their prosecution. “There are not many of them,” he added. “Removing them will purify society.”
Israel has withdrawn to an agreed on ceasefire area known as the Yellow Line, which was being marked out with yellow blocks on Monday. The Israeli government has said the retreat still leaves it in control of about 53 per cent of Gaza.
A senior official in the enclave's security apparatus told The National that the emergency tribunals established under wartime conditions had sentenced several collaborators to death. “These trials meet all the procedural standards of our revolutionary laws,” he said. “We cannot operate normal courts right now. This is the system we have.”
Some of the executions were conducted publicly, he confirmed, “to send a message of deterrence” to others. Rights activists have criticised the public nature of these killings, warning they could fuel fear and further instability. But the official defended the policy, saying “leniency with traitors is not an option".
He added that the security apparatus was monitoring all reactions closely, determined to avoid internal conflict while maintaining control. “Our goal is to learn lessons and prevent Gaza from slipping into civil war," he said.
Abdullah Sharshara, a legal researcher and community activist, called the campaign “necessary but dangerous”.
“Yes, these groups, the armed gangs, the war profiteers, the smugglers and the thieves, must be punished,” he said. “They stole aid meant for the hungry, trafficked drugs and terrorised people during the war. But we must be careful not to create new victims.”
Mr Sharshara said civilian casualties during these operations could ignite cycles of revenge and deepen social wounds. "Gaza is living through an extremely fragile period. The people need security, not more fear,” he said.
