Top US commander in Mideast calls on Hamas to stop shooting civilians
Militant group holds public executions of alleged collaborators
The top US commander in the Middle East demanded Wednesday that Hamas stop shooting Palestinian civilians after the militant group held public executions of alleged collaborators.
"We strongly urge Hamas to immediately suspend violence and shooting at innocent Palestinian civilians in Gaza -- in both Hamas-held parts of Gaza and those secured by the IDF behind the Yellow Line," US Central Command chief Admiral Brad Cooper said in a statement.
Since the partial withdrawal of Israeli forces in Gaza under the US-backed 20-point ceasefire deal, Hamas has been tightening its grip on ruined cities, launching a crackdown and executing people in the street.
Cooper urged Hamas to seize the "historic opportunity for peace" by "fully standing down, strictly adhering to President Trump's 20-point peace plan, and disarming without delay."
"We have conveyed our concerns to the mediators who agreed to work with us to enforce the peace and protect innocent Gaza civilians," Cooper added.
Hamas has published a video on its official channel showing the shooting of eight blindfolded and kneeling suspects, branding them "collaborators and outlaws."
The footage, apparently from Monday evening, emerged as armed clashes were underway between Hamas's various security units and armed Palestinian clans, some alleged to have Israeli backing.
In the north of the territory, as Israeli forces withdrew from Gaza City, the Hamas government's black-masked armed police resumed street patrols.
"Our message is clear: There will be no place for outlaws or those who threaten the security of citizens," a Palestinian security source in Gaza told AFP.
Israel and the United States insist Hamas can have no role in a future Gaza government.