There is no mystery about who is in charge in Gaza.
Less than two weeks into a US-brokered ceasefire, Hamas fighters have reemerged from their tunnel network—not to participate in reconstruction, but to hunt down critics, kill rivals, and reestablish fear-based rule.
Senior Hamas official Mohammed Nazzal, speaking from Doha, told Reuters on Friday that the group cannot commit to disarmament, a key condition of the Trump administration’s 20-point peace initiative.
“I can’t answer with a yes or no,” Nazzal admitted, casting doubt over the very premise of the plan. “To whom will the weapons be handed over?”
Instead of disbanding, Hamas intends to remain militarily active and politically dominant throughout the proposed “transitional phase.” While a technocratic body may govern in theory, Nazzal was clear: “On the ground, Hamas will be present.”
That presence has already been felt. Hamas forces are reportedly executing Gazans suspected of collaboration or criticism. According to Moumen al-Natour, a Gazan lawyer in hiding and former political prisoner who spoke to Fox News, “Hamas fighters came out of the tunnels and massacred families that opposed them… They are sending a signal that they are back—by terrorizing people.”
Last week, gruesome public executions were filmed and broadcast in Hamas-held territory. Nazzal defended the scenes, calling them “exceptional measures during war.”
So much for the transitional peace.
Meanwhile, Israel’s government says Hamas has already violated the ceasefire’s first stage by failing to return all of the remains of slain Israeli hostages.
“Hamas knows where the bodies are,” the Prime Minister’s Office stated bluntly. “They are to be disarmed under this agreement. No ifs, no buts. They have not.”
The US peace proposal—presented on Sept. 29 by President Donald Trump—includes an Israeli withdrawal from most of Gaza, the release of hostages in exchange for thousands of Palestinian prisoners, and amnesty for Hamas operatives who surrender their weapons.
That last clause now looks almost farcical.
“They are the only one left [who hasn’t accepted the plan],” Trump acknowledged. “But I have a feeling that we’re going to have a positive answer.”
Hamas, however, has already answered—with executions, evasions, and open refusal to lay down arms.
Analysis: What we are watching is not a peace process—it is a re-legitimization of Hamas under a diplomatic banner. Gaza’s ruling terror group is being invited into political normalization while it continues to murder opponents, violate ceasefire terms, and reject basic conditions for peace.
The language of “transitional governance” means little when the men with the guns have no intention of going anywhere.
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