From regulating the price of chicken to imposing taxes on cigarettes, Hamas is seeking to expand its control over Gaza as American plans for its future slowly take shape, Gazans say, raising rivals’ doubts about whether it will cede authority as promised.
Following the ceasefire that began last month, Hamas quickly regained control of areas from which Israel had withdrawn, killing dozens of Palestinians whom it accused of collaborating with Israel, theft or other crimes. Foreign powers are demanding that the group disarm and leave the government, but have not yet reached an agreement on who will replace it.
Now, a dozen Gazans say they increasingly feel Hamas control in other ways. Authorities monitor everything entering Hamas-controlled areas of Gaza, imposing taxes on some privately imported goods, such as fuel and cigarettes, and fining merchants who charge excessive prices, according to ten of the Gazans, three of them merchants with direct knowledge of the situation.
Ismail Al-Thawabta, head of the Hamas government’s press office, said reports of alleged Hamas taxes on cigarettes and fuel were inaccurate, denying that the government was raising any taxes.
The authorities were only carrying out urgent humanitarian and administrative tasks, while making great efforts to control prices, Thawabta said. He reiterated Hamas’ willingness to cede power to a new technocratic administration, whose goal was to avoid chaos in Gaza: “Our goal is for the transition to go smoothly.”
Hatem Abu Dalal, a shopping mall owner in Gaza, said prices were high because not enough goods were reaching Gaza. He added that government representatives were trying to put order in the economy, touring the area, inspecting products and setting prices.
Mohammed Khalifa, who was shopping in the Nuseirat area of central Gaza, said prices were constantly changing despite attempts to regulate them. “It’s like a stock market,” he said.
“Prices are high. There is no income, circumstances are difficult, life is hard and winter is coming,” he said.
US President Donald Trump’s plan for Gaza achieved a ceasefire on October 10 and the release of the last living hostages captured during Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023.
The plan calls for the establishment of a transitional authority, the deployment of a multinational security force, the disarmament of Hamas and the beginning of reconstruction.
But Reuters, citing multiple sources, reported this week that the de facto partition of Gaza appeared increasingly likely, with Israeli forces still deployed in more than half of the territory and efforts to push through the plan faltering.
Almost all of Gaza’s 2 million people live in areas controlled by Hamas, which took control of the territory from the Palestinian Authority (PA) of President Mahmoud Abbas and his Fatah Movement in 2007.
Ghaith al-Omari, a senior researcher at the Washington Institute think tank, said Hamas’ actions were aimed at demonstrating to both Gazans and foreign powers that it cannot be ignored.
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“The longer the international community delays, the more Hamas will gain a foothold,” Omari said.
Asked for comment on Gazans’ accounts that Hamas imposed taxes on some products, among other reported activities, a US State Department spokesperson said: “This is why Hamas cannot and will not govern in Gaza.”
A new Gaza government can be formed once the United Nations approves Trump’s plan, the spokesman said, adding that progress has been made toward forming the multinational force.
The Palestinian Authority is pushing to have a say in the new Gaza government, although Israel rejects the idea of it ruling Gaza again. Fatah and Hamas disagree over how the new governing body should be formed.
Munther al-Hayek, Fatah spokesman in Gaza, said Hamas’ actions “give a clear indication that Hamas wants to continue ruling.”
In Israeli-controlled areas, small Palestinian groups opposed to Hamas have a presence, which poses a constant challenge.
Gazans continue to suffer dire conditions, although more aid has arrived since the ceasefire.
A major Gaza food importer said Hamas had not returned to a full tax policy, but that “they see and record everything.”
They control everything that enters, with checkpoints along the routes, and they stop trucks and question the drivers, he said, who preferred not to be identified. Price manipulators are fined, which helps reduce some prices, but they are still much higher than before the war started and people complain that they don’t have money.
Before the war, the Hamas government in Gaza employed up to 50,000 people, including police. Thawabta claimed that thousands of them died and that those who remained were willing to continue working under a new administration.
Hamas authorities continued to pay them salaries during the war, although they reduced the highest ones, standardizing them at 1,500 shekels ($470) per month, according to Hamas sources and economists familiar with the matter. Hamas is believed to have used cash reserves to pay salaries, a diplomat said.
The Hamas government replaced four regional governors who were killed, according to sources close to Hamas. A Hamas official said the group also replaced 11 members of its politburo in Gaza who died.
Gaza City activist and commentator Mustafa Ibrahim claimed that Hamas was taking advantage of delays in Trump’s plan “to consolidate its power.” “Will he be allowed to continue doing it? I think it will continue until an alternative government is established,” he declared.
With information from Reuters
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