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Most Gazans Reject Hamas Rule and Doubt Its Ability to Govern: Poll
Trucks carrying aid move, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, Feb. 13, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Hussam Al-Masri
Most Gazans reject Hamas rule post-war and question its ability to govern as tensions rise and efforts continue for the second phase of the ceasefire agreement, according to a new poll.
The Institute for Social and Economic Progress (ISEP), a Palestine-based independent research institute, conducted a representative poll in Gaza on January 22, revealing that only 6% of Gazans prefer Hamas to rule post-war, while just 5.3% would vote for the group in future elections.
As perception of Hamas in the Gaza Strip remains negative, the survey found that 70% of respondents believe the terrorist group lacks the ability to govern, and only 12.4% expect it to remain in power post-war.
Meanwhile, Gazans have shown increased support for Fatah rule, the Palestinian Authority (PA)’s ruling party, after the ceasefire, with 60% favoring its leadership.
Respondents show increased support for Fatah rule in the Gaza Strip post-ceasefire. Photo: Institute for Social and Economic Progress (ISEP)
Hamas-led Palestinian terrorists started the war in Gaza when they murdered 1,200 people and kidnapped 251 hostages during their invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
Israel responded with a military campaign aimed at freeing the hostages and dismantling Hamas’s military and governing capabilities in neighboring Gaza.
Last month, both sides reached a ceasefire and hostage-release deal brokered by the US, Egypt, and Qatar.
According to ISEP’s recent poll, 67.9% of Gazans credit US President Donald Trump for the success of the ceasefire deal, with Qatar following behind. Most respondents also believe the ceasefire will hold and lead to reconstruction efforts, with over 60% highly confident in its stability and another 30% considering it somewhat secure.
Two in three (67.9%) respondents in the Gaza Strip credit Trump for the success of the ceasefire deal. Photo: Institute for Social and Economic Progress (ISEP)
Under phase one of the ceasefire agreement, Hamas agreed to release 33 Israeli hostages, including eight who are deceased, in exchange for Israel freeing over 1,900 Palestinian prisoners, many serving multiple life sentences for terrorism-related offenses, and withdrawing troops from some positions in Gaza.
So far, 29 Israeli hostages – plus five Thais – have been released in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and detainees, with the bodies of four more hostages, initially due to be handed over on Thursday, still to come.
The initial phase of the ceasefire deal is set to end on Saturday, while negotiations for the second phase, aimed at securing the release of remaining hostages and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, are ongoing.
ISEP’s survey found that 89% of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip lack the means to rebuild their lives after the war. Housing support was cited as the most helpful form of aid, with one in three also emphasizing that housing and shelter should be the priority of reconstruction efforts.
One in three (30%) respondents believe that housing and shelter should be the priority of rebuilding efforts. Photo: Institute for Social and Economic Progress (ISEP)
After the war, Gaza’s future remains uncertain, but Israel has ruled out any role for Hamas or the Palestinian Authority. Meanwhile, Hamas says it does not necessarily need to stay in power but insists on being consulted.
With the exception of Israel, most Arab states have rejected Trump’s plan to “take over” Gaza to rebuild the war-torn enclave, while relocating Palestinians elsewhere during reconstruction efforts. Trump has called on Egypt, Jordan, and other Arab states to take in Palestinians from Gaza after nearly 16 months of war between Israel and Hamas.
Middle Eastern leaders, expected to bear much of the financial burden of rebuilding Gaza, have struggled to propose their own plan but insist on a role for the Palestinian Authority, while also advocating for a two-state solution.
This week, former Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid, now the opposition leader in Israel’s parliament, proposed “The Egyptian Solution” as his alternative plan for Gaza’s reconstruction after the war. The proposal, which suggested Egypt administer Gaza for 8-15 years in exchange for canceling its $155 billion external debt, was rejected by Cairo.
The post Most Gazans Reject Hamas Rule and Doubt Its Ability to Govern: Poll first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.