At the same time as it was handing over Israeli hostages, Hamas was this week undertaking another task at the core of its survival strategy – visibly deploying armed fighters and police across parts of Gaza.

The show of strength was interpreted by some, among them Donald Trump, as a necessary – if temporary – step to prevent the territory dissolving into anarchy as a ceasefire takes hold.

However, the Islamist militant group behind the massacres on October 7, 2023, seemed to be wasting no time in seeking to reassert its authority amid the ruins of Gaza, claiming it was targeting “collaborators and traitors”, alongside reports of executions. Such deeds suggest that rather than being eradicated in its two-year war with Israel, Hamas remains a reduced but extant military force. New Featu

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