Hamas Redeploys 7,000 Troops to North Gaza, Orders “Cleansing” of Collaborators

In a defiant and provocative move that threatens to upend the fragile ceasefire, Hamas has ordered thousands of its security forces to redeploy into areas of northern Gaza and Gaza City recently vacated by the Israeli military. The order for a “general mobilisation,” sent via phone and text messages, reportedly calls on the troops to “cleanse Gaza of outlaws and collaborators with Israel,” raising fears of a brutal wave of internal purges and reprisals.
According to reports from sources on the ground, approximately 7,000 members of Hamas’s internal security forces, who had been sheltering in southern and central Gaza, have begun moving north. Armed units, some in uniform and others disguised as civilians, have been seen setting up checkpoints and re-establishing a security presence in districts that were the scene of the heaviest fighting just weeks ago.
This redeployment is a direct challenge to the framework of the U.S.-led peace plan. It comes just hours after a senior Hamas official publicly declared that the group’s disarmament was “out of the question,” and it appears to be a clear assertion of the group’s intent to remain the dominant military and political power in the Strip, regardless of any agreement to hand over civil administration.
In a further move to consolidate its control, Hamas has reportedly appointed five new governors for the northern districts. All five are said to be former brigade commanders from the group’s armed wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, a decision that places hardline military figures in charge of the post-IDF transition.
The order to “cleanse” the area of “collaborators” is particularly ominous. It signals a potential witch hunt against any Palestinians who may have cooperated with Israeli forces, tried to establish alternative local governance, or are seen as rivals to Hamas’s authority. This could lead to a new and bloody chapter of internal Palestinian violence just as the world is focused on securing the release of Israeli hostages.
The move puts Israel and the United States in an extremely difficult position. The Israeli military withdrew from these areas as a tacit part of the de-escalation, but Hamas is now exploiting that vacuum to reassert its armed control. This brazen action could easily collapse the entire peace process and trigger a resumption of the Israeli offensive, as Israel is highly unlikely to tolerate the re-establishment of a Hamas military presence on the borders of Gaza City.