With the possible elimination of Muhammad Sinwar, Hamas finds itself almost entirely bereft of leadership. The remaining figures are battalion commanders in its military wing who are expected to assume control: Izz al-Din al-Haddad and Raed Saad. According to Israeli assessments, Rafah Battalion Commander Muhammad Shabana may also have been present at the compound and could have been killed as well. Furthermore, the vast majority of members in Hamas' political bureau in Gaza, the so-called shadow government, have either been eliminated or fled abroad.
Against this backdrop, it appears that the position of other terrorist organizations in Gaza is only set to strengthen. It's not just Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), which still manages to occasionally fire rockets; over 15 additional groups and smaller cells are active in the Strip. Some operate as Iranian proxies, others are aligned with Islamic State and al-Qaida.
Video: Footage of the assassination attempt on Muhammad Sinwar // Arab social media networks
Palestinian Islamic Jihad: The brutal younger brother
On the eve of the October 7 massacre, an estimated 10,000 terrorists operated under the PIJ banner. The second-largest group in Gaza, it was founded in 1981 by Fathi Shaqaqi and drew inspiration from the Iranian Islamic Revolution. Experts believe it is now directly subordinate to the Islamic Republic's Revolutionary Guards and receives tens of millions of dollars in support.
Unlike Hamas, PIJ's senior leadership is still based abroad: Secretary-General Ziyad al-Nakhalah, his deputy Muhammad al-Hindi, and military wing commander Akram al-Ajouri. Its structure in Gaza mirrors Hamas' 24 battalions, each in charge of a different sector. After the collapse of the Assad regime in Syria, which PIJ supported due to its Iranian alliance, Islamist rebels came to power, leading to the arrest of several PIJ leaders and the relocation of others.
The Popular Resistance Committees: More radical than Hamas
The third-largest organization in Gaza, after Hamas and PIJ, is the Popular Resistance Committees, which operate a military wing known as the Salah al-Din Brigades. At the war's onset, its commander Raafat Harb Hussein Abu Hilal was eliminated. The group is composed of defectors from Hamas, Fatah, the Popular Front, and other factions. It was founded during the Second Intifada by Abu Jamal Samhadana, a Palestinian terrorist who had cooperated with Hamas.
The group dug smuggling tunnels along the Philadelphi Route and received backing from Hezbollah and Iran. Samhadana was killed in an Israeli airstrike in 2006, leading to a split into three factions:
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The core Popular Resistance Committees.
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The Popular Resistance Movement.
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Jaysh al-Islam (Army of Islam).
The latter two are associated with the Durmush clan, which operates several armed militias in Gaza. Some of these had past ties to Fatah and even to Mohammad Dahlan. Initially, they tried to undermine Hamas' rule in cooperation with Fatah, but later became even more radical.
This week, Palestinian sources reported that a senior member of the Committees, Ahmad Sarhan, allegedly responsible for kidnapping Israelis on October 7, was killed by an Israeli special forces unit in central Khan Younis, according to the Saudi newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat.
Mujahedeen Brigades: The faction behind the Bibas family murders
Another terrorist group that made headlines is the Mujahedeen Brigades. This faction splintered from Fatah in the mid-2000s and includes former members of Fatah's Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades. Like others, it was part of the joint operations room of Palestinian factions in Gaza, led by Hamas. It cooperated with operatives from various organizations and operated under Hamas' protection.
Mujahedeen Brigade terrorists were involved in the kidnapping and murder of Shiri, Kfir, and Ariel Bibas. A smaller faction called "Lords of the Wilderness" also participated. Like Hamas, PIJ, and Jaysh al-Islam, these groups adhere to Salafism, a fundamentalist stream of Islam aiming to revive the era of the Prophet's companions and establish a caliphate reminiscent of the seventh century. While Hamas has a long-term strategy rooted in the Muslim Brotherhood, these other groups believe in immediate jihad and the purging of "infidels."
The Popular and Democratic Fronts: A legacy of terror and division
Two other terrorist groups operating in Gaza are the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP). Once aligned with Marxist-Leninist ideology and the Soviet bloc, both now maintain ties with Iran and Hezbollah. They also took part in the October 7 massacre. PFLP Secretary-General Ahmad Saadat is serving a 30-year prison sentence for orchestrating the 2001 assassination of Israeli Tourism Minister Rehavam Ze'evi. During hostage negotiations, Hamas reportedly demanded his release alongside other symbolic terrorists.
The DFLP split from the PFLP in the late 1960s. Its 90-year-old leader Nayef Hawatmeh resides in Syria. The group has reported dozens of casualties among its fighters during battles with the IDF.
Another faction in Hamas' operations room is the "Popular Front – General Command," established in 1968 by Ahmad Jibril after breaking from the PFLP due to his loyalty to Syria's Hafez Assad. Jibril died in 2021. The current secretary-general, Talal Naji, based in Damascus, was briefly detained this month by Syria's new Islamist regime under Ahmad al-Sharaa (Abu Mohammad al-Julani).
Independent cells: Hamas' subcontractors
Various terrorist cells composed of Fatah defectors also operate in Gaza, grouped into at least four "independent" Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, funded by Iran. Another group, the Palestinian Freedom Seekers Movement, was founded by Ahmad Abu Hilal, who led it until 2021 before pledging allegiance to Hamas. Like other Fatah offshoots, these operatives often function as Hamas' subcontractors.
So far, we've identified 12 organizations cooperating with Hamas: PIJ, the Resistance Committees, the three Fronts, four Al-Aqsa Brigades factions, Abu Hilal's group, the Mujahedeen Brigades, and the "Lords of the Wilderness." These groups even held joint training before the war, coordinated by Ayman Nofal - Hamas' Central Camps Brigade Commander - who was killed during the war.
Islamic State and Al-Qaida: Loyal to none but themselves
In addition, several terrorist cells unaffiliated with Hamas are active in Gaza, aiming to establish caliphates loyal to Islamic State or al-Qaida. The main al-Qaida-linked faction is Jaysh al-Islam, which, as mentioned, splintered from the Resistance Committees and has ties to the Durmush clan.
Interestingly, this clan was even considered as a conduit for humanitarian aid early in the war. In 2007, Jaysh al-Islam kidnapped British journalist Alan Johnston, who was released after four months. Two American journalists were kidnapped by a cell linked to Jaysh al-Islam known as "Holy Jihad Brigades." Alongside Hamas and the Popular Resistance Committees, Jaysh al-Islam was also involved in the 2006 kidnapping of IDF soldier Gilad Shalit. Egyptian officials have accused these cells of collaborating with Islamic State operatives in the Sinai Peninsula and with the 2011 church bombing in Alexandria. The group also claimed responsibility for other terrorist attacks in Egypt.
Disarming Gaza: Mission impossible?
Ultimately, reviewing the power map of terrorist groups in Gaza leads to a sobering conclusion. Despite various plans to disarm the Strip as part of a post-Hamas agreement, the sheer number of armed factions raises serious doubts about whether such a goal is achievable. Several of these groups are not loyal to Hamas and answer to foreign powers like Iran. Given this complexity, Gaza's future at the end of the war remains more uncertain than ever.
