Hamas faces 'legitimacy crisis' as desperate Gazans flock to US-backed aid centers

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The violent radical known arsenic Hamas has agelong plagued the Gaza Strip but is facing a constituent of situation arsenic its power and support, which was already acold from sweeping, continues to driblet amid interior unit to extremity the warfare and instrumentality the hostages taken during the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks.

"Hamas’s existent posture reveals a captious inflection constituent successful its grip implicit the Gaza Strip," Joe Truzman, a elder probe expert and exertion at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies "Long War Journal" and an adept connected Palestinian violent groups, told Fox News Digital. "By opposing the caller assistance organisation mechanism, 1 that is coordinated by the U.S. and Israel, Hamas is signaling that its superior interest is not the well-being of Palestinians but the preservation of its authority."

Despite the monthslong assistance blockade connected the Gaza Strip by Israel and the images of starvation, Hamas this week threatened immoderate Palestinian civilians who judge nutrient assistance for their families and warned they "will wage the price, and we volition instrumentality the indispensable measures."

families starve successful  gaza

Displaced Palestinians enactment up pans to cod blistery nutrient from a foundation nutrient organisation halfway successful Gaza City, bluish Gaza, connected Tuesday, May 27, 2025. (Photographer: Ahmad Salem/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

HAMAS TERROR GROUP REPORTEDLY BUCKLING UNDER FINANCIAL STRAIN AMID ISRAELI MILITARY GAINS AND GROWING UNREST

Despite the threats, Palestinians person flooded the aid sites erected by the U.S.-Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), reportedly resulting successful scenes of chaos arsenic hopeless civilians overran 1 organisation determination connected Tuesday. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said its "troops fired informing shots successful the country extracurricular the compound," adding, "Control implicit the concern was established … and the information of IDF troops was not compromised."

The U.N. Human Rights Office claimed immoderate 47 radical were injured during the gunfire, portion the Hamas-run wellness ministry said 1 idiosyncratic was killed and 48 others were wounded, reported the BBC, though Fox News Digital could not independently verify the casualty count.

On Wednesday, GHF said successful a connection that, contrary to reports, nary Palestinians person been questioned oregon detained portion receiving aid. Additionally, GHF said that nary Palestinians had been changeable oregon killed portion trying to get aid.

"As we person repeatedly cautioned, determination are galore parties who privation to spot GHF fail. Their extremity is to unit a instrumentality to the presumption quo, adjacent if it means risking lifesaving assistance to the radical of Gaza," the GHF said successful a statement. "Reports to the contrary originated from Hamas and are inaccurate."

Truzman explained that it is successful Hamas involvement to represent the assistance transportation arsenic negatively arsenic possible, and to usage the chaos to beforehand its return to power

"Hamas had important power implicit assistance flows, which it utilized not lone for governance but besides arsenic leverage to reenforce loyalty, reward patronage networks, and support interior control," the adept explained. "The erosion of this power poses some a symbolic and operational menace to the group.

"With Hamas becoming sidelined from the assistance process, the radical is facing a legitimacy crisis," Truzman added. 

Despite the chaotic scenes that arose arsenic assistance yet returned to Gaza, the GHF said Tuesday that it had distributed astir 8,000 nutrient boxes totaling 462,000 meals truthful far. 

Displaced Palestinian children hold   to person   a escaped  repast  from a foundation  nutrient  organisation  halfway  successful  Gaza City, bluish   Gaza, connected  Tuesday, May 27, 2025.

Displaced Palestinian children hold to person a escaped repast from a foundation nutrient organisation halfway successful Gaza City, bluish Gaza, connected Tuesday, May 27, 2025. (Photographer: Ahmad Salem/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

On Wednesday, 8 trucks worthy of assistance were delivered, which equates to immoderate 378,262 meals. 

"Operations volition proceed to standard up tomorrow," the GHF confirmed.

One Gazan told the Center for Peace Communications that the nonaccomplishment of Hamas, which serves arsenic the section government, to unafraid affordable and accessible nutrient has driven civilians to the American organisation site. 

"In fact, they were bully to us," helium said. "They were handing retired rations cards and started to archer america to instrumentality them. Unlike those ruling Gaza who don't bash thing for us.

"We, arsenic a people, are telling you that we request anyone, anyone who tin supply america with these necessities," helium added. "Otherwise, nary 1 would beryllium going to the American organisation point. If Hamas is listening to us, get disconnected the people's backs.

"The radical are dying," the antheral added.

ISRAELI AMBASSADOR SLAMS UN'S 'MAFIA-LIKE' TACTICS AGAINST US-BACKED GAZA FOUNDATION

In caller months, civilian populations person not lone been turning to outer actors for alleviation wherever possible, they person increasingly called connected Hamas to instrumentality the hostages, halt the warfare and adjacent permission the Gaza Strip. 

"This displacement undermines Hamas’s representation arsenic the authorization successful Gaza and exposes its weakened state," Truzman said. 

"However, immoderate presumption that Hamas mightiness output nether these conditions indispensable beryllium tempered by the quality of its surviving leadership," helium warned. "Those who stay astatine the helm are among the astir ideologically entrenched and militarily committed members of the organization."

Hamas took implicit the Gaza Strip successful 2007 aft it defeated its rival party, Fatah, which is portion of the Palestine Liberation Organization. 

Despite the plurality ballot astir 2 decades ago, Hamas has struggled to support power and stableness for years and its enactment – adjacent successful the pb up to the 2023 attacks that prompted the largest-ever warfare betwixt Israel and Hamas successful Gaza – was reportedly lacking and its enactment increasing progressively unpopular. 

starving children gaza

British unpaid doc Victoria Rose, left, is seen moving astatine Nasser Hospital successful Khan Yunis, Gaza, connected May 25, 2025. ((Photo by Alaa Y. M. Abumohsen/Anadolu via Getty Images)

ISRAEL BLOCKS HUMANITARIAN AID INTO GAZA AFTER HAMAS REJECTS CEASEFIRE EXTENSION PROPOSAL

Israel and Egypt person constricted the travel of goods into the Gaza Strip for the past 2 decades, and borderline crossing restrictions person been heavy enforced since the 1980s. Israel withdrew from Gaza successful 2025.

However, according to a study by the Wilson Center, lone a fraction of the colonisation anterior to the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks blamed nutrient shortages connected outer factors similar sanctions, portion a 3rd blamed the Hamas-run authorities for mismanagement, portion different 4th of the colonisation blamed inflation.

The study besides recovered that astir fractional of Palestinian civilians said they had nary spot successful Hamas' leadership, portion astir a 3rd of the colonisation threw their enactment down the group.

Support is believed to person dropped successful the astir 600 days that followed the Oct. 7, 2023 panic attacks, and the consequent devastation brought to the Gaza Strip. 

Gaza hungry

Displaced Palestinians hold to person a escaped repast from a foundation nutrient organisation halfway successful Gaza City, bluish Gaza, connected Tuesday, May 27, 2025. (Photographer: Ahmad Salem/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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"If the caller assistance mechanics succeeds successful improving surviving conditions for Palestinians, surpassing what Hamas has been capable to supply during wartime, it is improbable to reverse the increasing nationalist dissatisfaction with the group," Truzman told Fox News Digital. "Even an imperfect but externally managed assistance strategy whitethorn further exposure Hamas’s governance failures, peculiarly its prioritization of powerfulness retention implicit the payment of the population. 

"While tangible improvements volition instrumentality clip to materialize, the specified cognition that beingness tin amended without Hamas whitethorn beryllium capable to displacement nationalist attitudes further against the group," helium added. 

Caitlin McFall is simply a Reporter astatine Fox News Digital covering Politics, U.S. and World news.

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