As the chapter closes on Yasser Abu Shabab, 32, the “Popular Forces” militia leader who appeared in Rafah during the war and was widely viewed as a collaborator with Israel, Ghassan al-Duhaini has been named his successor.
Soon after Abu Shabab was killed last Thursday, reportedly during a family dispute mediation, al-Duhaini, who was said to be injured in the same altercation, appeared in a video online dressed in military fatigues and walking among masked fighters under his command.
But who is Ghassan al-Duhaini? Has he just appeared, or was he there all along? Here’s what we know:
Who is Ghassan al-Duhaini?
Palestinian media sources say al-Duhaini, 39, has long been the group’s de facto leader, despite being officially the second-in-command.
They argue that his experience and age made him the operational head, while Abu Shabab, the figure publicly recruited by Israel, served as the face of the militia.
Al-Duhaini was born on October 3, 1987, in Rafah, southern Gaza. He belongs to the Tarabin Bedouin tribe, one of the largest Palestinian tribes that extends regionally and to which Abu Shabab belonged.
He was a former officer in the Palestinian Authority security forces, where he held the rank of first lieutenant.
Then he later joined Jaysh al-Islam, a Gaza-based armed faction with ideological ties to ISIL (ISIS).
Did he really take over after Abu Shabab?
The militia announced al-Duhaini as its new commander on its official Facebook page on Friday.
Al-Duhaini pledged to continue the group’s operations against Hamas.
In an interview with Israel’s Channel 12, comments later reported by The Times of Israel on Saturday, al-Duhaini insisted he had no fear of Hamas.
“Why would I fear Hamas when I am fighting Hamas? I fight them, arrest their people, seize their equipment … in the name of the people and the free,” he said.
On Friday, the militia published a promotional video on an affiliated Facebook page showing al-Duhaini inspecting a formation of armed fighters.
He told Channel 12 that the footage was intended to demonstrate that the group “remains operational” despite the death of its leader.
“His absence is painful, but it will not stop the war on terrorism,” he declared.
Has he always been against Hamas?
Hamas lists al-Duhaini among its most wanted figures, accus