Yasser Abu Shabab: The Fall of an Anti-Hamas Militia Leader in Gaza Conflict

Yasser Abu Shabab has led the most prominent anti-Hamas group that emerged in Gaza during the ongoing conflict.

Israeli media reported on Thursday that the leader of an armed Palestinian faction opposing Hamas in Gaza has been killed, potentially undermining Israeli efforts to support Gazan clans against the Islamist movement.

Yasser Abu Shabab, a Bedouin tribal leader based in Israeli-controlled Rafah in southern Gaza, commanded the most significant of several small anti-Hamas groups that formed during the two-year-long war.

His death would represent a significant advantage for Hamas, which had labeled him a collaborator and directed its fighters to eliminate or capture him.

The Facebook page of Abu Shabab's organization, the Popular Forces, has not immediately confirmed information about his status.

In June, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed that Israel had armed anti-Hamas clans, though few additional details about this policy have been disclosed since that acknowledgment.

Despite the U.S.-backed ceasefire between Hamas and Israel agreed upon in October, Abu Shabab's group has continued operations from Israeli-controlled areas of Gaza.

Rafah has experienced some of the most intense violence during the ceasefire period. Residents reported gun battles there on Wednesday, and Israel announced four of its soldiers were wounded in the area. The Israeli military stated on Thursday that its forces had killed approximately 40 Hamas militants trapped in tunnels beneath Rafah.

On November 18, Abu Shabab's group posted footage showing numerous fighters receiving directives from his deputy to conduct a security operation to "clear Rafah of terror," apparently referring to Hamas fighters believed to be hiding there.

Israeli media outlets including Kan, Israel's public broadcaster, reported Abu Shabab's death citing a security source.

Israel's Army Radio, also referencing a security source, reported he died in Soroka hospital in southern Israel from unspecified injuries, although the hospital subsequently denied he had been admitted there.

The reports did not specify when he died or how he sustained the reported wounds.

An Israeli government spokesperson declined to comment on these reports, while Hamas had no comment according to its Gaza spokesperson.

Israel's strategy of supporting anti-Hamas clans developed during its offensive against the group in Gaza, aiming to end Hamas's control of the coastal territory following the October 7, 2023 attacks on communities in southern Israel.

In a Wall Street Journal article published in July, Abu Shabab, a member of the Tarabin Bedouin tribe, stated that his group had established its own administration in the Rafah area and called for U.S. and Arab recognition and support.

Abu Shabab's group has denied receiving support from Israel.

Netanyahu stated in June that Israel's backing for Gazan clans was beneficial and had preserved the lives of Israeli soldiers.

However, the policy has faced criticism from some in Israel who argue such groups cannot provide a viable alternative to Hamas, which has governed Gaza since 2007.

"The writing was on the wall. Whether he was killed by Hamas or in some clan infighting, it was obvious that it would end this way," Michael Milshtein, a former Israeli military intelligence officer at the Moshe Dayan Center in Tel Aviv, told Reuters.

Several other anti-Hamas groups have emerged in Israeli-controlled areas of Gaza. Palestinian political analyst Reham Owda noted that Abu Shabab's death would increase doubts among these groups about their "ability to challenge Hamas".

U.S. President Donald Trump's Gaza plan envisions Hamas disarming and the enclave being governed by a transitional authority supported by a multi-national stabilization force. However, progress has been slow, with Hamas thus far refusing to disarm and no agreement on forming the international force.

Hamas has accused Abu Shabab of looting U.N. aid trucks during the war, allegations his group has denied, claiming instead that they protected and escorted aid deliveries.