Gazans are increasingly voicing anger at Hamas as the war with Israel continues to cause suffering and devastation in the Gaza Strip, according to a recent report.
“They should have predicted Israel’s response and thought of what would happen to the 2.3mn Gazans who have nowhere safe to go,” Nassim, a civil servant, told the Financial Times. “They [Hamas] should have restricted themselves to military targets.”
“I pray every day for God to punish the one who brought us to this situation,” Mohammed, a Gazan, told the outlet. “I pray every day for the death of Sinwar.”
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Yahya Sinwar is the leader of Hamas and planned the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks on Israel.
“There is no doubt support for Hamas is declining in Gaza because more and more people feel it has some responsibility for the pain they are enduring,” Dr. Khalil Shikaki, director of the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research, said.
“People are no longer afraid,” professor of political science Mkhaimar Abusada said. “They’ve suffered like never before, and their situation is so catastrophic that it makes no difference to them. They’re already facing death.”
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“The role of the resistance is to protect us civilians, not to sacrifice us,” Samia, who was forced to move to Rafah, said. “I don’t want to die and I didn’t want my children to witness what they’ve seen and to live in a tent suffering from hunger, cold and poverty.”
Multiple polls also indicate that support for Hamas is falling in Gaza.
The Financial Times quoted Khalil Shikaki, director of the center, as saying that “support for Hamas fell by almost a quarter to 34 per cent, according to a poll taken during the first week of March.” He added that the perception of the organization lost popularity in the West Bank, plummeting from 44 percent to 35 percent.
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