Since Israeli forces withdrew from parts of Gaza in October under a ceasefire agreement, Hamas has moved quickly to fill the void.

Its police forces have taken to the streets again. Its fighters have executed opponents. And, according to local businessmen, its officials have charged taxes on some expensive products imported into the territory.

During two years of war, senior Hamas commanders and thousands of fighters have been killed, and the group's arsenal has been deeply depleted. It now controls less than half of Gaza's territory, with the rest occupied by Israel.

However, Hamas has managed to reassert its power in Gaza, according to Israeli security officials and an Arab intelligence official. They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal assessments.

“Hamas suffered a heavy blow, but it was not defeated,” said Shalom Ben Hanan, former head of the Shin Bet, Israel's domestic intelligence agency. “It's still standing.”

This rapid regrouping represents a formidable obstacle to the Donald Trump administration's plan to rebuild a Hamas-free Gaza. The plan calls for the demilitarization of the enclave and calls for the destruction of all military infrastructure, including tunnels and weapons production facilities.

Hamas emerged from the war with a foundation on which it can develop again.

Ben Hanan, who is briefed by the Shin Bet leadership, said that although Hamas' ranks are depleted, official estimates say 20,000 remain. fighters.

Hamas has quickly replaced commanders killed in the war, said Brigadier General Erez Winner, who held a senior position in the military. Israeli until March.

The group has many places to hide and store weapons, as more than half of the underground tunnel network remains intact, Israeli and Arab officials said.

Hamas continues to run the central governing bodies in Gaza, including the security services, Ben Hanan said. Its supply of missiles has dwindled, but its members continue to have lighter weapons such as automatic rifles, rocket-propelled grenades and mortars.

Hamas gunmen operate checkpoints in some parts of Gaza and interrogate and detain people, according to residents. Their police have stopped people from trying to rob aid trucks and abandoned homes, they said.

“They are trying to convey to the public that they are still in charge and providing security,” said Nidal Kuhail, 31, a resident of Gaza City. “Their presence is noticeable, but they also seem weaker than in the past.”

Husam Badran, a senior Hamas official, said the group was willing to allow a committee of Palestinian technocrats to take over the administration of Gaza. Chaos would be the result of leaving behind a power vacuum, he said.

“It would be the most dangerous decision,” he said in an interview, adding that the police aimed to “preserve security and stability.”

However, Hamas has used brutal tactics to settle scores with their rivals.

In mid-October, members of the group forced eight men to kneel on a crowded street in Gaza City before shooting them dead. Hamas internal security officials said the deaths were retaliation for the killing of several of its militants during the war.

On Thursday, Yasser Abu Shabab, leader of an Israeli-backed Palestinian militia, died in a confrontation in the east of Rafa. Although it was unclear whether Hamas was involved, the group welcomed the news.

As Hamas has tried to establish security, it has also tried to raise money from the ceasefire.

Since the truce went into effect, hundreds of trucks carrying humanitarian aid and commercial goods have entered Gaza daily, a significant increase from wartime. Hamas has been generating revenue from some of the most expensive items that come in, taxing a small number of commercial products, such as computers and solar panels, according to four Gaza businessmen.

Ismail Thawabteh, director general of the Hamas government's media office in Gaza, denied that the group's government was collecting taxes on imported goods.

Despite his return partial, it is clear that Hamas does not exercise the power it had before October 7, 2023, when it was a militia and a full-fledged government that tightly controlled Gaza

The half of Gaza it now presides over was demolished by the war. The Trump administration has refused to consider rebuilding the parts of Gaza that remain under Hamas authority. Israeli officials say much of the group's funding has also been cut.

More importantly, Hamas is facing more pressure than ever, from both Israel and the international community, to hand over the weapons it still possesses. Trump's plan for Gaza is based on disarming Hamas and having a new government take over administration of the territory with the support of an international stabilization force.

Badran said Hamas was willing to discuss the group's weapons, but only in the context of "serious" talks about Israel's complete withdrawal from Gaza, a complete cessation of military operations in the territory and the establishment of a Palestinian state in the West Bank, Gaza and Jerusalem. Eastern.

“Without that, talking about these issues would be meaningless,” he said. "Worthless". He also suggested that Hamas was open to a long-term truce.

For Hamas, giving up all its weapons would be tantamount to giving up a central element of its identity: the ability to resist Israel.

Beyond their ideological attachment to weapons, Hamas members consider them essential to defending themselves, said Wesam Afifa, a Palestinian analyst and former executive director of Hamas' Al Aqsa TV.

The analysts Palestinians said they thought Hamas could take a pragmatic approach to preserve some kind of future role in Gaza and a long-term ceasefire with Israel.

Israeli political and military officials have complained that with each passing day of the ceasefire, Hamas deepens its control and reorganizes its forces, making it difficult to introduce a viable alternative to replace it.

“Hamas is under siege,” he said. "But if it continues to control some areas of Gaza and wants to rebuild its capabilities, it will find a way to rebuild them."