Rare protests against Hamas break out in Gaza after IDF strikes weaken group’s leadership

Protests against Hamas rule broke out in at least three neighborhoods of the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, marking a rare display of public dissent against the terror organization.

Demonstrations were reported in Jabaliya, Beit Lahiya, and even Khan Younis – a former terror hub. During the march in Beit Lahiya, demonstrators carried white flags and held signs critical of Hamas.

In one video shared on social media, people can be heard calling for the release of the Israeli hostages. 

The protests took place in front of the Indonesian Hospital in Beit Lahiya, located in the northern Gaza Strip.

Following Al Jazeera's extensive coverage of hostage release ceremonies and its consistently positive reporting on Hamas during the war, several protesters questioned why the Qatari news agency was absent and not covering the anti-Hamas demonstration.

“The people are demanding the press to cover these events!” one participant said. “People are demanding freedom, they’re demanding a halt to the hostilities against Gaza, they’re demanding peace and an end to this war.” 

Anti-Hamas protests are breaking out in northern and southern Gaza, asking "Where is the press?!" Of course, Aljazeera & leftists or "independent" Western media are nowhere to be seen because they will never disrupt the Hamas-centric "resistance" narrative. Expose them all now! pic.twitter.com/GLFAAPKLiB

— Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib (@afalkhatib) March 25, 2025

Another protester said that Arab media journalists had entered the Indonesian Hospital to avoid covering the march. 

In another video showing hundreds of protesters marching by, the cameraman can be heard saying in Arabic, "Large crowds are protesting now against the rule of Hamas. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The people here are calling to free the prisoners so we can remain alive.” 

He was apparently referring to the Israeli hostages, whom Hamas has continuously referred to as “prisoners.” 

Later Tuesday evening, additional videos surfaced on social media showing smaller protest events taking place in other parts of the Gaza Strip.

While the exact size of the crowds is difficult to determine, a pro-Palestinian, anti-Hamas account on 𝕏 compared the turnout to that of the hostage handover ceremonies, suggesting that even more people participated in the protests.

The photo on the left shows thousands of people in Gaza protesting against Hamas. The photo on the right shows a few hundred—mostly Hamas members—marching in a Hamas parade after the ceasefire.

The truth couldn’t be more obvious. pic.twitter.com/aBdh4GOpO4

— Ihab Hassan (@IhabHassane) March 25, 2025

The same 𝕏 account also shared two images, allegedly from clan leaders in both the northern and southern parts of the Gaza Strip, expressing support for the protests and denouncing Hamas.

IMPORTANT: These are two statements released by Gaza clan leaders from both the south and the north, expressing their support for the protests against Hamas and calling for another demonstration tomorrow.

Hamas is attempting to claim the statements are fake—but that is entirely… pic.twitter.com/FflNmTihAM

— Ihab Hassan (@IhabHassane) March 25, 2025

By Tuesday night, armed members of Hamas arrived to disperse the crowds, however, footage showed some of the protesters hurling rocks at them.

While the exact cause of the protests is unclear – along with the true level of public support for them – it appears that Israel’s recent attempts to target Hamas leadership and assets over the past several days have emboldened at least some Gaza residents to take a stand. 

Several times throughout the war, and even before Oct. 7, 2023, there were scattered protests against Hamas, however, the terror group typically responded quickly and brutally to suppress them. 

Hamas, itself, appears to have been surprised by the protests, which came just a day after the terror group released a call for protests and marches across the world in solidarity with the “resistance.” 

In social media posts, the organization attempted to downplay the protests, referring to some statements made by local leaders as “fake.”

Al Jazeera, which has a long-running policy of avoiding criticism of Hamas, attempted to portray the protests as demonstrations in support of Hamas and focused only on calls for an end to the war.

It is also unclear what, if any, involvement the Palestinian Authority had in the protests or whether the marches were organized locally. In one letter, claiming to be from the clan leaders (mukhtars) of Shejaya, there was a call to hold additional protests on Wednesday at noon.

Kan News' Arab affairs correspondent Roee Kais shared a statement from one of the mukhtars from Beit Lahiya, who said the people of Gaza do not want any more weapons or war. 

"We say to our brothers in Hamas, enough, enough, enough, this is injustice, every two or three years a problem is forced on us and the whole world comes out against us,” Hisham al-Barawi, head of the al-Barawi clan, said.

“We are not satisfied with this Hamas government, we are not against Hamas, but it is impossible to live under Hamas rule.” 

Al-Bawari said the Palestinians in Gaza want to get rid of their weapons and surrender. 

“It is forbidden to possess weapons, we need to wave white flags to the world and say to the world, stand by the Palestinian people, we are interested in living in peace and not on weapons. We are not interested in weapons and we are not interested in living in the resistance, we want to wave white flags to the whole world.”