Hamas dissolves Gaza governing body, clearing way for technocratic committee
The Palestinian movement Hamas announced Monday that it had dissolved its governing body in the Gaza Strip after nearly 20 years in power, paving the way for a technocratic committee to administer the territory.
Issued on: 06/07/2026
FRANCE 24
Video by: Noga TARNOPOLSKY
Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas announced Monday the dissolution of the body that has governed the Gaza Strip for nearly two decades, clearing the way for a technocratic committee to administer the territory.
The move marks a significant political shift by Hamas, which has run Gaza since its fighters seized control from rival Palestinian movement Fatah in 2007 after winning legislative elections the year before.
Since a ceasefire took effect in Gaza last October between Hamas and Israel, the group has repeatedly said it is prepared to step aside from day-to-day governance, but the thorny issue of its disarmament remains unresolved.
Ismail al-Thawabta, head of Hamas's media office in Gaza said the head of the government's emergency committee had "decided to dissolve the committee to facilitate the administrative and governmental transition to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG)".
Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem told AFP that the group took the decision to relinquish charge "in order to remove any pretexts for the occupation, which continues its aggression and war of extermination".
The dissolution of the Hamas body paves the way for the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), headed by Palestinian official Ali Shaath, to assume administrative responsibilities.
Shaath, head of NCAG, said his committee was "fully prepared to assume its national responsibilities as soon as the necessary resources and capabilities are available".
"The fundamental requirements for the committee's success are a single authority, a single law with a clear mandate, and a single armed force under the authority of this single entity," Shaath said on X.
READ MOREHamas says ready to transfer Gaza governance to Palestinian technocratic committee
The NCAG was established by the Board of Peace, which was in turn set up by US President Donald Trump when he brokered the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel last October.
But it has remained based outside Gaza for months, reportedly due to Israeli objections to its entry into the war-devastated territory.
The Board of Peace insisted on X on the "the consolidation of all weapons under the control of the NCAG as provided for in the Comprehensive Gaza Peace Plan and United Nations Security Council Resolution 2803".
Hamas and other Palestinian factions have held several rounds of talks in Cairo with mediators to narrow differences, particularly over the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire.
The first phase involved the release of the last Israeli hostages held by Hamas in exchange for Palestinians detained by Israel.
The transition to the second phase, which was to involve Hamas's disarmament and a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, has been stalled for months.
Israeli forces have actually expanded their occupation of the territory in recent months, taking control of nearly 70 percent.
Meanwhile, Hamas is demanding the establishment of a Palestinian administration before it will consider handing over any part of its arsenal.
The question of Gaza's post-war governance remains one of the main sticking points in negotiations on implementing phase two.
Israel rejects any return of Hamas to power, but also rejects a direct takeover by the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority at this stage.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
The Palestinian movement Hamas announced Monday that it had dissolved its governing body in the Gaza Strip after nearly 20 years in power, paving the way for a technocratic committee to administer the territory.
Issued on: 06/07/2026
FRANCE 24
Video by: Noga TARNOPOLSKY
Buildings that were destroyed during the Israeli ground and air operations stand in the northern Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel on July 2, 2026. © Leo Correa, AP
03:29
03:29
Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas announced Monday the dissolution of the body that has governed the Gaza Strip for nearly two decades, clearing the way for a technocratic committee to administer the territory.
The move marks a significant political shift by Hamas, which has run Gaza since its fighters seized control from rival Palestinian movement Fatah in 2007 after winning legislative elections the year before.
Since a ceasefire took effect in Gaza last October between Hamas and Israel, the group has repeatedly said it is prepared to step aside from day-to-day governance, but the thorny issue of its disarmament remains unresolved.
Ismail al-Thawabta, head of Hamas's media office in Gaza said the head of the government's emergency committee had "decided to dissolve the committee to facilitate the administrative and governmental transition to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG)".
Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem told AFP that the group took the decision to relinquish charge "in order to remove any pretexts for the occupation, which continues its aggression and war of extermination".
The dissolution of the Hamas body paves the way for the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), headed by Palestinian official Ali Shaath, to assume administrative responsibilities.
Shaath, head of NCAG, said his committee was "fully prepared to assume its national responsibilities as soon as the necessary resources and capabilities are available".
"The fundamental requirements for the committee's success are a single authority, a single law with a clear mandate, and a single armed force under the authority of this single entity," Shaath said on X.
READ MOREHamas says ready to transfer Gaza governance to Palestinian technocratic committee
The NCAG was established by the Board of Peace, which was in turn set up by US President Donald Trump when he brokered the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel last October.
But it has remained based outside Gaza for months, reportedly due to Israeli objections to its entry into the war-devastated territory.
The Board of Peace insisted on X on the "the consolidation of all weapons under the control of the NCAG as provided for in the Comprehensive Gaza Peace Plan and United Nations Security Council Resolution 2803".
Hamas and other Palestinian factions have held several rounds of talks in Cairo with mediators to narrow differences, particularly over the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire.
The first phase involved the release of the last Israeli hostages held by Hamas in exchange for Palestinians detained by Israel.
The transition to the second phase, which was to involve Hamas's disarmament and a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, has been stalled for months.
Israeli forces have actually expanded their occupation of the territory in recent months, taking control of nearly 70 percent.
Meanwhile, Hamas is demanding the establishment of a Palestinian administration before it will consider handing over any part of its arsenal.
The question of Gaza's post-war governance remains one of the main sticking points in negotiations on implementing phase two.
Israel rejects any return of Hamas to power, but also rejects a direct takeover by the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority at this stage.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
Hamas is ready for a "complete transfer of governance" to a technocratic committee in the Gaza Strip, a spokesman for the militant group told AFP on Wednesday, adding that the critical Rafah border crossing with Egypt must be opened in both directions, "without any Israeli obstacles".
By: FRANCE 24
A Hamas police officer directs traffic in Gaza City on January 28, 2026. © Reuters stringer
Hamas said Wednesday it was ready to transfer the governance of Gaza to a Palestinian technocratic committee, while insisting the key Rafah border crossing be fully reopened within days.
"Protocols are prepared, files are complete, and committees are in place to oversee the handover, ensuring a complete transfer of governance in the Gaza Strip across all sectors to the technocratic committee," Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem told AFP.
The 15-member National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG) is a team of Palestinian technocrats created as part of the US-sponsored ceasefire agreement which came into effect on October 10.
It is charged with managing the day-to-day governance of post-war Gaza and will work under the supervision of the "Board of Peace", which US President Donald Trump will chair.
The NCAG, headed by former Palestinian Authority deputy minister Ali Shaath, is expected to enter the Gaza Strip once the territory's Rafah crossing, on its border with Egypt, reopens.
Hamas spokesman Qassem added that the Rafah crossing "must be opened in both directions, with full freedom of exit and entry to the Gaza Strip, without any Israeli obstacles".
Rafah is Gaza's only gateway to the outside world that does not lead to Israel and is a key entry point for both people and goods.
It has been closed since Israeli forces took control of it in May 2024, except for a limited reopening in early 2025, and other bids to reopen have failed to materialise.
NCAG head Shaath announced last week that Rafah would reopen in both directions the following week.
Qassem told AFP the "independent national committee's announcement of the opening of the Rafah crossing is important".
"What is more important is that we monitor this committee's handling of citizens' departures and entries in full freedom in accordance with the agreement, and not according to Israeli conditions," he added.
Israel has said it would only allow pedestrians to travel through the crossing as part of its "limited reopening" once it had recovered the remains of the last hostage, Ran Gvili.
Israeli forces brought back Gvili's remains on Monday and his funeral was held in the southern town of Meitar on Wednesday.
Qassem said Wednesday that "it is clear that Hamas is committed to the agreement to stop the war on the Gaza Strip", which began after the militant group's deadly attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023.
"It has carried out everything required of it in the first phase and is ready to enter all tracks of the second phase," he added.
With the technocratic committee's creation and the last hostage held in Gaza returned to Israel, the ceasefire deal's next important milestones will be Hamas's disarmament and Israel's withdrawal from Gaza.
Though Hamas said the return of Gvili's body showed its commitment to the ceasefire deal, it has so far not surrendered its weapons.
The group has repeatedly said disarmament is a red line, but it has also suggested it would be open to handing over its weapons to a Palestinian governing authority.
Neither Israel nor Hamas have committed to a clear date or strategy for withdrawal or disarmament.
Hamas said Wednesday it was ready to transfer the governance of Gaza to a Palestinian technocratic committee, while insisting the key Rafah border crossing be fully reopened within days.
"Protocols are prepared, files are complete, and committees are in place to oversee the handover, ensuring a complete transfer of governance in the Gaza Strip across all sectors to the technocratic committee," Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem told AFP.
The 15-member National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG) is a team of Palestinian technocrats created as part of the US-sponsored ceasefire agreement which came into effect on October 10.
It is charged with managing the day-to-day governance of post-war Gaza and will work under the supervision of the "Board of Peace", which US President Donald Trump will chair.
The NCAG, headed by former Palestinian Authority deputy minister Ali Shaath, is expected to enter the Gaza Strip once the territory's Rafah crossing, on its border with Egypt, reopens.
Hamas spokesman Qassem added that the Rafah crossing "must be opened in both directions, with full freedom of exit and entry to the Gaza Strip, without any Israeli obstacles".
Rafah is Gaza's only gateway to the outside world that does not lead to Israel and is a key entry point for both people and goods.
It has been closed since Israeli forces took control of it in May 2024, except for a limited reopening in early 2025, and other bids to reopen have failed to materialise.
NCAG head Shaath announced last week that Rafah would reopen in both directions the following week.
Qassem told AFP the "independent national committee's announcement of the opening of the Rafah crossing is important".
"What is more important is that we monitor this committee's handling of citizens' departures and entries in full freedom in accordance with the agreement, and not according to Israeli conditions," he added.
Israel has said it would only allow pedestrians to travel through the crossing as part of its "limited reopening" once it had recovered the remains of the last hostage, Ran Gvili.
Israeli forces brought back Gvili's remains on Monday and his funeral was held in the southern town of Meitar on Wednesday.
Qassem said Wednesday that "it is clear that Hamas is committed to the agreement to stop the war on the Gaza Strip", which began after the militant group's deadly attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023.
"It has carried out everything required of it in the first phase and is ready to enter all tracks of the second phase," he added.
With the technocratic committee's creation and the last hostage held in Gaza returned to Israel, the ceasefire deal's next important milestones will be Hamas's disarmament and Israel's withdrawal from Gaza.
Though Hamas said the return of Gvili's body showed its commitment to the ceasefire deal, it has so far not surrendered its weapons.
The group has repeatedly said disarmament is a red line, but it has also suggested it would be open to handing over its weapons to a Palestinian governing authority.
Neither Israel nor Hamas have committed to a clear date or strategy for withdrawal or disarmament.
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