Hamas has set up checkpoints, engaged in gun battles with rivals and meted out violent beatings to Palestinians it suspects of having collaborated with Israel just hours after agreeing to a ceasefire to end a two-year conflict in the Gaza Strip.
According to Gazans interviewed by the Financial Times as well as images shared on social media and security updates from the UN and other agencies, the militant group has moved rapidly across the strip to reassert its control and settle scores.
The resilience of the group, after being hammered by the Israeli military, has caught Gazans by surprise, and will dominate negotiations ahead for US President Donald Trump’s 20-point peace plan.