Armed group claims to set up area in Khan Younis for Gazans seeking alternative to Hamas rule

A former member of the Palestinian Authority’s security forces in Gaza says he has formed a group operating against Hamas in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis, and urges Palestinians in the area to seek safety with him.

Hossam al-Astal tells The Times of Israel that his group will take in “whoever lives under Hamas’s oppression,” and that there is enough food, water and shelter for all.

“In the coming days, we will bring in another 300-400 people,” he says, adding that the group carries out security screenings to make sure those joining have no ties to Hamas.

Al-Astal’s group has established itself around the village of Kizan al-Najjar, just south of Khan Younis, which was emptied of its residents during the war. The location is about a kilometer from al-Mawasi, where Israel has directed Palestinians displaced from Gaza City.

“I am responsible for the (new) humanitarian zone in Khan Younis,” he explains, comparing his efforts to those of Yasser Abu Shabab, whose armed gang has set up security structures and civilian infrastructure as an alternative to Hamas rule in Israeli-controlled parts of Rafah in recent months.

The two men and their respective groups are in contact, al-Astal says, “but each of us operates independently.”

Hailing from a Bedouin family in the Khan Younis area, 50-year-old al-Astal says he worked in Israel for many years, and later for the PA’s security forces when they still controlled Gaza. He was jailed by Hamas several times. Hamas-linked social media accounts have shared images of al-Astal in recent days, accusing him of collaborating with Israel.

He says there is “coordination” between his group and Israel, and that soon “we will rely on Israel to bring us electricity and water.”

Al-Astal says the group has weapons to defend themselves and that they received funding from multiple sources, including the US, Europe, and unspecified Arab states.

“People here don’t want Hamas, they want peace with Israel,” he says. “I’m 50 years old; I remember when the army and Israel were in Gaza, and we lived in peace,” he reflects. “Children played, children went to school, and there were no problems. But today, Hamas’s terror has destroyed Gaza and its people.”

The IDF has refused to comment.