US condemns Hamas after video shows masked gunmen threatening, extorting Gazan civilians

The U.S. State Department has condemned the terrorist organization Hamas after a video clip revealed masked terrorists affiliated with Hamas threatening Gazans who refused to pay taxes in Khan Younis.

After first appearing on Palestinian anti-Hamas activist Hamza al-Masri’s Telegram channel, Arab American anti-Hamas activist Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib posted the video clip on 𝕏 on Sunday.

The video showed Hamas’ “Sahm” (Arrow) Unit extorting and intimidating civilians in the Gaza Strip. The terrorists in the clip targeted small vendors, threatening them with torture and disappearance if they did not pay taxes to Hamas.

The Sahm unit, part of Hamas’ police force in Gaza, frequently targets Gazans accused of cooperating with the Jewish state – a charge often leveled against anyone who opposes Hamas. The unit describes itself as “pursu[ing] and execut[ing] thieves, merchants, agents, and highwaymen.”

The U.S. State Department specifically condemned the Hamas terrorists for destroying tents belonging to Gazans who refused to pay taxes to Hamas.

Alkhatib argued that the clip showed Hamas terrorists threatening torture, including "metal rods in legs and knees,” against any Gazans who do not follow Hamas’s demands. The video clip also showed local bystanders protesting loudly against the violent Hamas action in Gaza. 

This video shows how Hamas treats innocent Gazans who won’t pay bribes or their "taxes.” It’s heartbreaking - @POTUS is ending Hamas’s stranglehold. Together, the @BoardofPeace & @NCAG are paving the way to a liberated and brighter future for all Gazans. https://t.co/DuzTmAHC3Q

— U.S. State Dept - Near Eastern Affairs (@StateDept_NEA) February 22, 2026

Israel unilaterally withdrew from the Gaza Strip in 2005. In 2006, Hamas won the local Gaza election, and the following year, the terrorist organization took over the coastal enclave by violently ousting its political rival, Fatah, which runs the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah. 

Hamas initially enjoyed wide support among Gazans, and an Arab poll in November 2023 revealed that a whopping 85% of the Arab speaking population in Gaza, Judea and Samaria (West Bank) supported the Hamas-led Oct. 7 massacre of 1,200 Israelis and kidnapping of 251 people from southern Israeli border communities. 

However, Hamas has lost much of its previous support following two years of devastating war in Gaza. Much of the population increasingly blames the group for the destruction, citing its attack on Israel and its deliberate, systematic use of civilian shields in places such as hospitals, schools, mosques and residential buildings. While sympathies for Israel remain low, many Gazans also fault Hamas for prolonging the war by refusing to release all Israeli hostages until the Trump administration brokered a ceasefire in October 2025.

The growing opposition to Hamas led to the formation of multiple anti-Hamas militias in the Gaza Strip.

A Wall Street Journal (WSJ) report in January revealed that the Israeli military and intelligence were actively cooperating with anti-Hamas militias in Gaza during the formal ceasefire. 

“When they go out and carry out actions against Hamas, we are there to oversee them and at times also to assist,” said Yaron Buskila, a former senior operations officer with the IDF’s Gaza Division. “That includes providing information, and if we see Hamas trying to threaten them or get close, we intervene actively."

The so-called Yellow Line currently divides Gaza into roughly two equal parts, one controlled by the IDF and the other largely controlled by Hamas forces. The cooperation with anti-Hamas militias has enabled the IDF to target Hamas forces in areas where Israeli forces are not present on the ground.