Israel’s Southern Command is preparing for violent protests and riot activity along Gaza’s “yellow line” on Friday, after learning that a campaign on Arabic-language social media pages linked to Fatah has called for demonstrations against Hamas on June 26. Palestinian spokespeople say the planned protests target Gaza’s dire living conditions and the delay in advancing the second phase of the ceasefire deal, which is supposed to include rebuilding homes and infrastructure and ending the fighting, while blaming Hamas leadership for the stalemate.
Hamas has identified the anti-Hamas campaign, some of it run by Fatah activists in the West Bank, and is responding on two fronts, according to the report. One is the execution of alleged collaborators, with public violence and humiliation meant to deter dissent. The other is a counter-campaign encouraging protests in Gaza against Israel, and even against the U.S. representative in the peace government, Nikolay Mladenov, because talks between Hamas and the United States through him have not advanced.
Israeli military officials said Hamas is trying to push demonstrators from inside Gaza City toward the yellow line. Unlike the 2017 to 2019 border unrest, there is now no fence, which raises the risk of direct contact. The campaign is reportedly getting broad attention online and is also becoming part of public conversation in Gaza, unlike earlier efforts.
The army said it cannot yet predict how many people will turn out, but in recent weeks there have already been several friction incidents near the yellow line. IDF forces have been cautious about opening fire, fearing some of those approaching may have been civilians. A Southern Command officer said the situation resembles 2017, when Yahya Sinwar led internal protests against Hamas toward the border to exhaust the IDF, normalize clashes, and pressure the political leadership in Jerusalem toward an arrangement. The IDF plans to reinforce forces accordingly as the situation develops.
