"Gaza Residents Protest Against Hamas Amid Ongoing War and Hardship"

For the third day in a row, people in southern Gaza have gone out to protest against Hamas.

Videos on social media show hundreds of people. They shouted, “Out! Out! Out! All of Hamas, out!” They want the war to stop and for Hamas to leave Gaza.

It is dangerous to speak against Hamas. On Tuesday, messages were sent to journalists on WhatsApp. The messages warned them not to post bad news that could hurt people’s mood.

Activists say the protests began on Monday. Young people started them. Then others joined while going to get food from community kitchens. Some were still carrying their pots.

Many are angry at Hamas leaders. A video of Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri made people upset. In it, he called the war with Israel “eternal.” He said, “We will rebuild houses and have more babies for every martyr.”

Videos from Khan Younis show young men blaming Hamas. One said, “You sell our blood for money… Gaza will dig your grave.”

In the past, people in northern Gaza protested against Hamas. But in the south, Hamas stayed in control. It was hard for people to speak out—until now.

Foreign reporters, like those from the BBC, are not allowed into Gaza. This makes it hard to know how people really feel.

Since Monday, Israel has bombed Khan Younis every day. The army told people in the east of the city to go to camps in the coastal al-Mawasi area. This was one of the biggest evacuation orders this year.

One protester, called Alaa, spoke to the BBC. He used a fake name because he fears Hamas. He said people no longer care if Hamas tries to stop them. “We are dying from hunger, fleeing, and bombings,” he said.

Alaa is from northern Gaza. He has moved around 20 times during the 19-month war. He cannot afford a tent. He was jailed in 2019 for protesting against Hamas. He says Hamas must go.

He said, “Resistance did not start with Hamas. If Hamas leaves, others will still resist Israel. But Hamas’s actions will cost us all of Palestine.”

“We just want our kids to live in peace,” he said. “We ask the world to pressure both Israel and Hamas to stop this war.”

It is dangerous to speak out in Gaza.

In March, a 22-year-old man named Oday a-Rubai was kidnapped and killed. He had joined anti-Hamas protests in Gaza City.

Others have been beaten, shot, or killed for speaking out.

Alaa said when they got close to Nasser hospital on Monday, a group of men told them to stop. One man tried to pull a gun. His friend stopped him. They did not act because the crowd was too big.

Moumen al-Natour is a lawyer and ex-political prisoner. He helped start the protest group “We Want to Live.” He said people are tired of fleeing. They are angry that Hamas won’t give up their weapons.

The UN says over 57,000 people have fled their homes in southern Gaza since May 15 due to fighting and evacuation orders.

Since the war began, over 53,000 people in Gaza have died, according to health officials in Gaza. In the last 24 hours, 82 more people were killed.

Israel began its attacks on Hamas after the group’s deadly raid on October 7, 2023. That attack killed about 1,200 people and took 251 hostages.