‘We want to live’: Rage at Israel fuses with ire at Hamas as protests rock Gaza
Palestinians take part in a protest calling for the end of the war and of Hamas’ rule in Gaza, Beit Lahiya, northern Gaza, 26 March 2025
Ruwaida Amer reports in +972 on 27 March 2025:
For the past two days, Palestinians across the Gaza Strip have taken to the streets to demand an end to Israel’s genocidal onslaught and to Hamas’ rule of the territory. Beginning in the northern city of Beit Lahiya, demonstrations quickly spread to other parts of the enclave including Shuja’iyya in the north, Nuseirat and Deir Al-Balah in the center, and Khan Younis in the south. The protests are the largest since the war began, and the most significant public display of dissent against Hamas in Gaza in years.
The demonstrations were triggered by new Israeli orders to evacuate Beit Lahiya and the surrounding areas, as the military expands its latest ground incursion. Residents spontaneously went out onto the streets on Tuesday to vent their anger at being forcibly displaced yet again, reflecting the population’s increasing desperation after Israel shattered the fragile ceasefire last week.
While holding Israel responsible for the slaughter of more than 50,000 people over the past year and a half, and for subjecting the Strip to a longstanding blockade that has further intensified during the war, the protesters are also directing their ire at Hamas: they are calling on the group to do everything in its power to stop the bombing before stepping aside to allow for free elections.
“I participated in the demonstrations from the moment they started,” 50-year-old Raed Tabash, from Khan Younis, told +972. “I chanted and screamed and vented my inner rage. We’ve been living under siege for 20 years. There’s no work and no future for our youth. Our children are growing up and we don’t know what awaits them. How many children have been killed during this war? Are we giving birth to our children only for missiles to kill them in the most horrific way?