In a rare display of dissent, protesters in northern Gaza shouted anti-Hamas slogans as hundreds gathered to call for an end to the war. The demonstration, held in the city of Beit Lahia on Tuesday, saw scores of people amassed, with most demanding an end to the 17-month-long conflict and Israel’s military offensive.
The offensive, launched by Israel in response to the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, terrorist attacks, has resulted in over 50,000 deaths in the Gaza Strip, according to Palestinian health officials. The attacks, which killed approximately 1,200 people and took 250 hostages, prompted Israel’s military response.
Protesters in Beit Lahia held signs and chanted slogans, with one man heard saying, “We don’t want destruction; we don’t want war; we want to live.” Children carried signs reading “We refuse to die,” while others in the crowd shouted “Hamas out” and “Hamas terrorists.”
The protest, which appeared to be the largest since the start of the current conflict, was not organized by any specific group. However, plans for further demonstrations were circulating, according to NBC News’ crew on the ground.
Sanam Vakil, director of Chatham House’s Middle East and North Africa Programme, noted that the protests come at a critical time for Hamas. “I think the protests are coming really at an important time where Hamas is really being pushed from all sides — the Israeli government, the U.S. government, Palestinians writ large,” she said.
Vakil added that the protest signifies frustration and opposition to Hamas among Palestinians. While support for Hamas in the Gaza Strip has been reported to be around 35%, according to a September poll by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research, levels of discontent are difficult to gauge.
The current conflict has seen a significant escalation in violence, with Israel resuming airstrikes and ground operations in Gaza after the first phase of a 42-day ceasefire deal with Hamas ended on March 1. Since then, over 700 people have been killed in the enclave.
Negotiations on the second stage of the truce deal were meant to begin 16 days after the start of stage one but have yet to commence. As a result, dozens of hostages, both alive and dead, remain in Hamas’ captivity, with efforts by mediators to resume the truce and secure their release stalled.
Israel has pushed for Hamas to agree to a proposal pitched by Steve Witkoff, President Donald Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, which would have seen an extension to the first phase of the deal. However, Hamas has demanded a return to negotiations aimed at implementing the second part of the three-phase deal, which was expected to pave the way to an end to the war.
Hamas leaders are likely to feel “very much backed into a corner” and “can’t figure out a way to achieve all of their aims,” Vakil said. These aims include remaining a political force in Gaza, obtaining a pathway for Palestinian statehood, and ending the war. Vakil noted that Hamas will likely have to compromise, but “systems like Hamas’ don’t generally put the needs of their citizens before their own.”
