Palestinians cycle and walk along a street lined with damaged buildings near the al-Shati refugee camp, west of Gaza City, on July 1, 2026. (Credit: Omar al-Qattaa/AFP)
The Hamas-led government in the Gaza Strip announced Monday that it had dissolved its administration, nearly 20 years after taking power in the Palestinian enclave, paving the way for a technocratic committee tasked with administering the territory.
"The chairman of the government's emergency committee, Mohammed al-Farra, has officially submitted his resignation," Ismail al-Thawabta, director of the Hamas government's media office, told AFP, adding that Hamas had "decided to dissolve the committee in order to facilitate the administrative and governmental transition to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG)," led by Ali Shaath and blocked outside Gaza for several months.
'Deprive the occupation of any pretext'
The NCAG was created by the "Peace Council," established by U.S. President Donald Trump during the negotiations that led to the start of a theoretical cease-fire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza on Oct. 10, 2025. Since then, 1,072 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire, according to the Health Ministry.
The decision, marking a major political turning point nearly 20 years after Hamas took power in the enclave in 2007, is intended to pave the way for new governance of the besieged territory by an already established technocratic committee tasked with ensuring Palestinian representation in Gaza's institutions.
"Hamas is taking a new step by giving up the administration of the Gaza Strip in order to deprive the occupation of any pretext to continue its aggression and its war of extermination," Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem told AFP.
"We hope that the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza will quickly be able to enter the Gaza Strip, and Hamas reiterates its willingness to transfer governmental responsibilities to it to ensure the success of its mission," he added.
Another senior Hamas official told AFP earlier that the movement had already informed other Palestinian factions of its decision at a recent meeting in Cairo.
"The various factions welcomed Hamas's decision, calling it a serious step enabling the National Committee to take on its role in governance," he said.
'Ready to take on our responsibilities'
The Palestinian technocratic committee later responded to the announcement, saying it was ready to administer the Gaza Strip.
"We affirm that the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza is fully prepared to assume its national responsibilities as soon as the necessary resources and capacities are available," its chairman, Ali Shaath, wrote on X.
Devastated by more than two years of genocidal war following the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023, in southern Israel, the Gaza Strip remains besieged by the Israeli army, which occupies nearly 70% of its territory despite the October 2025 truce.
Its reconstruction represents a colossal challenge, as living conditions in the enclave continue to deteriorate with the spread of rodents and parasitic diseases, worsened by the ongoing Israeli blockade of humanitarian aid.
