Hamas carried out mass public executions in Gaza on Monday, just hours after finalizing a peace deal with Israel — as part of a wave of brutal retribution that followed the withdrawal of Israeli forces, according to disturbing video footage. The executions are a violation of the peace deal that was signed on Monday.
The disturbing video shows eight blindfolded men, brutally beaten and forced to kneel in the street, being executed by Hamas fighters as a crowd cheered in the background. The militant group claimed—without offering proof—that the victims were "criminals and Israeli collaborators," according to the BBC. One of the victims was identified as Ahmad Zidan al-Tarabin.
Violating the Peace Deal
Zidan al-Tarabin, according to Israel's ynet News, was allegedly involved in recruiting members for a militia not affiliated with Hamas. After the IDF pulled out, Hamas moved quickly to tighten its grip on Gaza, going after local "clans" — powerful family-based armed groups that had grown more influential during the fighting.
The Palestinian militant group launched its brutal revenge campaign even before the peace deal was finalized.
On Sunday, violent clashes broke out between Hamas' internal security forces and the powerful Dagmoush clan, leaving 52 clan members dead. Reports from Gaza said that 12 Hamas fighters were also killed in the fighting, including the son of senior official Bassem Naim.
Witnesses claimed that Hamas militants used ambulances to enter the neighborhood of the clan, accusing them of working with Israel.
"It's a massacre. They're dragging people away, children are screaming and dying, they're burning our houses. What did we do wrong?" one clan member's daughter told Ynet News.
Hamas Still Not Ending War
Earlier on Monday, President Donald Trump indicated that he had allowed Hamas to handle internal security in Gaza "as it sees fit," as part of the peace deal aimed at securing the return of the remaining living hostages to Israel.
"They [Hamas] do want to stop the problems, and they've been open about it, and we gave them approval for a period of time," he told a reporter on Air Force One.
"You have close to 2 million people going back to buildings that have been demolished, and a lot of bad things can happen. So we want it to be — we want it to be safe. I think it's going to be fine. Who knows for sure," he said.
Under Trump's peace plan, Hamas was supposed to lay down its weapons and hand over control of Gaza — a condition the militant group has so far flatly rejected.
