The leader of a major Israeli-backed militia in the Gaza Strip has been killed, marking a significant setback for Israel's controversial strategy of building up Palestinian proxy forces to confront Hamas.
A Violent End for a Controversial Commander
Yasser Abu Shabab, the Bedouin tribal leader who commanded the Popular Forces militia, is believed to have died from wounds sustained in a violent clash. The incident involved powerful and well-armed local families in the Israeli-held zone of the devastated territory. Sources in Gaza and local media reports indicate the exact timing of his death is unclear but likely occurred within the last 48 hours.
Abu Shabab, who was in his 30s and had been expelled by his own clan, reportedly died following a dispute over a hostage. The confrontation began when his men took a hostage from a powerful local family. After Abu Shabab refused to release the captive, relatives of the hostage mounted an attack on the Popular Forces base. The clash resulted in casualties on both sides, with Abu Shabab suffering severe injuries from which he later died in Gaza.
Israel's Proxy Strategy Under Scrutiny
The Popular Forces was the largest and best-armed of several militias that emerged in Gaza during the later stages of the two-year conflict. All these groups are understood to have received Israeli support as part of a wider strategy to arm proxies to degrade Hamas and control the population. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged in June that Israel had armed anti-Hamas clans and factions, though there has been no official comment on Abu Shabab's death.
This policy has drawn criticism from regional experts. Dr Michael Milshtein, a former Israeli military intelligence officer and Hamas expert at Tel Aviv University's Moshe Dayan Center, stated: "The writing was on the wall. Whether he was killed by Hamas or in some clan infighting, it was obvious that it would end this way." Critics argue such groups offer no viable alternative to Hamas, which has controlled Gaza since 2007.
The death is likely to fuel doubts among other emerging anti-Hamas groups about their capacity to challenge the militant organisation. Dr Reham Owda, a Palestinian political analyst, suggested Abu Shabab's fate would have a demoralising effect on similar factions.
The Rise and Fall of the Popular Forces
Abu Shabab's militia, consisting of roughly a hundred fighters, continued operating from Israeli-controlled areas of Gaza even after a US-backed ceasefire between Hamas and Israel was agreed in October. The group's activities were closely coordinated with Israeli forces around controversial aid distribution sites run by the now-defunct Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, an opaque US- and Israel-backed private organisation.
On 18 November, the Popular Forces released a video showing dozens of fighters receiving orders from Abu Shabab's deputy, Ghassan al-Duhaini, to launch a security sweep to "clear Rafah of terror"—an apparent reference to Hamas fighters in tunnels. A week later, the group claimed to have captured Hamas members.
Abu Shabab, a member of the Tarabin Bedouin tribe, told the Guardian in June that his activities were "humanitarian" and denied working "directly" with the Israeli military. However, his group and others were reportedly recruited from individuals engaged in systematic looting of aid convoys, leading to allegations that Israel allowed theft of humanitarian assistance to bolster its new allies.
A Hamas spokesperson, which had labelled Abu Shabab a collaborator and vowed to hunt him down, denied any involvement in the killing. The war in Gaza was triggered by the Hamas raid into Israel in 2023 that killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and saw 250 abducted. The ensuing Israeli offensive and strikes since the ceasefire have killed more than 70,000 Palestinians, mostly civilians, and left the territory in ruins.
