It may have been only a few hundred people, perhaps a few thousand. But their chant was unmistakable: “Barra, barra” – “Out, out,” they shouted in the streets of Gaza. Their message was directed at Hamas, which has ruled the enclave with an iron fist since 2007. Amid ruins, hunger, and despair, Palestinians have repeatedly gathered in recent weeks to voice their anger at their own rulers – a rare and dangerous act of defiance.
A doctor who took part in one of the demonstrations put it bluntly: “I protested because I want Hamas to step down – so we can finally start rebuilding.” He wouldn’t say more. Opposing Hamas can be a deadly choice. At least one protester was reportedly killed by the militant group afterward, and others have spoken of threats and intimidation.
Anger and Fear – A Climate of Silence
How widespread the discontent with Hamas really is remains hard to quantify. Many in Gaza are traumatized by months of war, displacement, hunger, and death. Their daily lives revolve around survival. But what is visible in the streets signals a development that even Israeli media have begun to take note of – in stark contrast to their coverage of the many Palestinian civilians killed in Israel’s military offensive.
“Hamas has largely lost public support,” the doctor said. “They don’t care about the thousands of civilians who have died – only about staying in power.” The group’s media outlets brand any protest as “treason against the Palestinian people.” Demonstrators are labeled “Israeli agents.” This climate of fear is not new: even before the war, Gaza felt like it was under “military rule,” the doctor said – a dictatorship that once enjoyed broad support, at least in the beginning.
A Historic Misstep
In the 2006 parliamentary elections, Hamas won around 44 percent of the vote in the occupied territories. Many Palestinian analysts saw this not as an ideological endorsement but as a protest vote against Fatah and the corrupt, ineffectual Palestinian Authority. The result triggered a violent power struggle between the factions – one in which Israel, ironically, sided with Hamas. For years, Prime Minister Netanyahu’s government enabled cash transfers from Qatar into Gaza, often in suitcases full of U.S. dollars.
This policy is now widely seen as a strategic boomerang. After the October 7, 2023 massacre in which Hamas militants murdered more than 1,200 people in Israel, many Israelis stopped distinguishing between Hamas and the Palestinian population. Israeli President Isaac Herzog declared: “It is an entire nation that is responsible.”
A War of Images, Not People
The war rages on – and with it, a battle for narrative control. Israel’s military claims to have killed over 20,000 Hamas fighters. But the perception of a weakened organization is deceptive. When Israeli hostages were released during a brief ceasefire, they were accompanied by armed Hamas fighters – a calculated propaganda move. Later drone footage showed these were often small, staged groups, intended for show.
“We believe Hamas has already recruited almost as many new fighters as it has lost,” said U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in January. A statement both sides can live with: Netanyahu, because it justifies continued warfare – Hamas, because it bolsters its image as a resilient resistance force.
Leaders in Safety, Civilians as Shields
While Gaza’s civilians suffer, many Hamas leaders live abroad – in Qatar or Turkey. From there, they issue calls to persevere. Basem Naim, a senior Hamas official in Istanbul, accused demonstrators of being “agents of foreign powers.” On its Telegram channels, Hamas instructs fighters to blend into civilian crowds if pursued by Israeli drones. Civilians as shields – or as propaganda material in case Israel strikes anyway.
Hamas continues to launch sporadic rocket attacks on Israel. They have little military effect and are often intercepted – but they instill fear. Just days ago, militants fired from the Khan Yunis refugee camp. Israel responded with airstrikes. Hamas then publicized the civilian casualties. It’s a bloody cycle with no winners.
Voices Against Fear
“To end the war, Hamas must give up power,” said the doctor. Other Palestinians have begun to criticize the coverage of Al Jazeera, the influential Qatari broadcaster. They accuse it of glorifying Hamas and ignoring the protests. “It’s intentional,” a Palestinian journalist told the Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
How many share this view is unclear. A recent survey by the Palestinian Institute for Social and Economic Progress found that only six percent of Gaza residents now support Hamas. But the poll included just 400 respondents – a small and hardly representative sample.
A larger study by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research in September 2024 – before the latest wave of protests – showed support at 34 percent. It is conceivable that real approval has dropped sharply since.
Between Hope and Destruction
Analyst Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib of the Atlantic Council sees a historic opportunity in the protests: “The anger of the people in Gaza could be channeled in a new direction – toward a future without the terrorist group Hamas.” But he also warns: “The Israeli military is killing an appalling number of innocent civilians.”
Those who protest against Hamas do so not only under threat of repression, but under falling bombs. And still, the chant “barra, barra” echoes through the rubble of Gaza – a sign that part of society has begun to hope again.
