World
Bucking threats, hundreds in Gaza seen protesting Hamas for first time in a year
Hundreds of Palestinians took to the streets in the Gaza Strip on Friday to protest the Hamas terror group, footage shared on social media appeared to show.
The demonstrations against Hamas – which functions as the de facto government in the parts of the Strip not controlled by the Israeli military – were planned several weeks in advance, with activists pledging a major turnout on July 26.
But as the date approached, Hamas operatives began issuing threats against Gazans considering taking part in the protests, which may well have impacted turnout.
Footage appeared to show protesters carrying signs reading, “God willing, Hamas out,” “We are not pawns,” and “We want to live.” In one video, chants of “Enough with the destruction” (of Gaza) could be heard.
It was unclear where exactly in the Strip the protests were taking place.
Other footage appeared to show armed Hamas operatives deployed in the streets to prevent demonstrations.
HORRIFIC: Hamas militias are deploying their armed, masked men into the streets across the Gaza Strip to crush the protests. pic.twitter.com/PbtAmnJ1jO
— Ihab Hassan (@IhabHassane) June 26, 2026
None of the footage could be easily verified, and it was not published by the major media outlets in Gaza, which are affiliated with Hamas.
Earlier this week, several Gaza residents told The Times of Israel that Hamas had warned journalists in Gaza not to cover the protests.
Instead, major Gazan outlets on Friday published footage showing empty intersections where protests had allegedly been planned, declaring the “Failure of the June 26 Revolution.”
A resident of central Gaza confirmed to The Times of Israel that masked men affiliated with Hamas had been present in the streets of Deir al-Balah to prevent protesters from gathering.
He also said a small number of people took part in anti-Hamas demonstrations in Gaza City and other parts of northern Gaza, while people stayed home in central Gaza amid Hamas warnings on social media against participating in the rallies.
The resident asked not to be named due to concerns for his safety.
غزة الصوت النابض pic.twitter.com/egqcX2wMAt
— الناشط حمزة المصري (@hamza198708) June 26, 2026
A Facebook page titled “June 26 Revolution” had called for demonstrations at 18 different locations across the Strip.
The day’s events marked the first organized anti-Hamas protests in Gaza since a wave of demonstrations in the spring and summer of 2025.
One of the protest’s organizers, Abd al-Hamid Abd al-Ati, a Gazan currently living in Cairo, wrote on his Facebook account that “perhaps the June 26 movement did not achieve all that we had hoped for, but the message was delivered, and the cause for which people took to the streets remains alive.”
Under a US-brokered 20-point plan to end the war which began with Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, Hamas is to disarm and hand over power to a transitional authority, paving the way for an Israeli military pullback and the rebuilding of the enclave, which suffered extensive destruction during the fighting.
However, those plans have yet to move beyond the initial ceasefire stage due to Hamas’s refusal to give up its weapons and other disagreements over implementation.
Though badly battered, Hamas has maintained enough strength to exercise control over the part of the Strip that the IDF has pulled back from, cementing its hold by executing opponents and others it views as threatening its rule, according to multiple reports.
