Amid stalled peace process and shaky ceasefire, Hamas is rehabilitating itself in Gaza

With the Gaza peace plan apparently mired in competing goals and intentions among the various mediators and guarantors, Hamas is taking advantage of the confusion and the relative lack of active engagement with Israeli forces to strengthen and consolidate its rule in Gaza. 

That assessment was reported in Israeli media earlier this week, as IDF senior commanders reportedly warned the government that Hamas has resumed control in 13 out of Gaza’s 25 municipalities.

A report in Channel 13 said that the military told political leaders that Hamas has redeployed police officers and checkpoints throughout much of the territory it controls, and the group has also begun repairing public infrastructure. 

According to that report, senior IDF officials told the cabinet, “It is impossible to ignore the fact that Hamas is strengthening and rehabilitating its capabilities in the Gaza Strip. Israel needs to build an independent operational plan for the demilitarization of the Gaza Strip – because the American plan does not provide a solution to this.” 

While Israel agreed to the 20-point peace plan put forward by U.S. President Donald Trump, which ultimately led to the release of the remaining 20 living hostages in Hamas’ possession, further progress on the plan has been stalled by disagreements regarding Hamas’ disarmament.

This was one of the main points of the plan, along with the establishment of an international stabilization force (ISF), which was to take responsibility both for disarming Hamas, and for operating as the main security apparatus in the Strip after the IDF pulls out. 

Israel is under pressure from the U.S. and other Western nations to move to the second phase of the ceasefire-peace proposal, despite the lack of clarity regarding Hamas’ disarmament and the makeup of the ISF. In the meantime, according to reports in Hebrew media, the IDF has continued to engage in work clearing and preparing the area in Rafah for rebuilding, re-establishing basic infrastructure, such as water and electricity. 

Despite the intense U.S. pressure to move forward, Channel 12 reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to hold a high-level security discussion to prepare for the IDF’s return to fighting, as the defense establishment is increasingly convinced the ceasefire will collapse due to Hamas’ intransigence. 

Israeli officials assess that the Trump administration is pressuring Israel to move to the second phase in order to give the appearance that the peace plan is functioning. However, a senior security official told Channel 13 that Israel cannot move forward without demilitarization. 

“There is no reconstruction before demilitarization; it is contrary to the Trump plan, Gaza must be demilitarized,” the security source said. “The Americans are not succeeding in forming a foreign force, so they are going for interim solutions, which are currently unacceptable to Israel.” 

Earlier this week, the Popular Forces militia of Yasser Abu Shabab, which operates in the Rafah area, where it helps protect a small population of Gaza residents who escaped there before the ceasefire, claimed to have apprehended a Hamas terrorist. The militia said the man was planning an attack on a meeting of the Popular Forces. 

The group shared a picture of the terrorist, along with a video of him announcing his name and position within the al-Qassam Battalion. In the video, the terrorist states that Hamas has carried out repeated attacks against Abu Shabab’s forces, and encourages his fellow fighters to surrender to Abu Shabab’s Popular Forces, saying they will receive a reward for doing so. 

‼️HAMAS CONFESSION
Four Al-Qassam terrorists crawled out of a tunnel last night to massacre Yasser Abu Shabab, his deputy, and everyone at the aid point: men, women, kids. They surrendered on the spot to Abu Shabab’s Popular Forces. One filmed a full confession and begged his… pic.twitter.com/BeJDeH0DmL

— Mossad Commentary (@MOSSADil) November 27, 2025

At the time of publication, Hamas did not acknowledge the release of the video or affirm that the captured terrorist belonged to the terror group. 

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