Hamas is rebuilding its grip on Gaza even as diplomatic efforts move forward in Washington. An internal IDF assessment sent to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and reported by Reuters states that the terror organization is restoring both its civilian administration and military leverage during the ceasefire period.
President Donald Trump’s ceasefire plan was conditioned on Hamas disarming and relinquishing control of Gaza. That condition has not been met.
According to the IDF document, 14 of Gaza’s 17 ministries are now operating, compared to five at the height of the fighting. Thirteen of 25 municipalities have resumed activity. Hamas has appointed five new district governors, all linked to its Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades. Senior posts in the economy and interior ministries, which oversee taxation and internal security, have been filled. A newly appointed deputy health minister appeared this month in an official ministry video touring hospitals.
“Hamas is advancing steps on the ground meant to preserve its influence and grip in the Gaza Strip ‘from the bottom up,’” the military assessment states.
The Trump framework envisions a technocratic body, headed by former Palestinian Authority official Ali Shaath, assuming administrative control. But Israeli officials warn that without full disarmament, such a body risks serving as cover.
“Shaath may have the key to the car, and he may even be allowed to drive, but it is a Hamas car,” one source told Reuters.
An Israeli government official dismissed any future role for Hamas as a “twisted fantasy,” stating, “Hamas is finished as a governing authority in the Gaza Strip.” Military officials disagree, warning that Hamas is exploiting the ceasefire to reassert control in areas vacated by Israeli troops.
Hamas spokesman Ismail al-Thawabta denied that the appointments represent consolidation of power, saying temporary replacements were necessary to prevent “administrative vacuum” and maintain essential services. On the ground, however, Israeli officials report that police stations have reopened, tax departments are collecting revenue, and municipal systems are functioning under Hamas oversight.
The IDF assessment states that Hamas is collecting taxes from merchants bringing in smuggled goods, including cigarettes, batteries, solar panels, and mobile phones. An Israeli indictment filed this month alleges that Hamas has earned hundreds of millions of shekels by taxing smuggled cigarettes since the war began. Hamas continues to pay salaries to civil servants and fighters, averaging roughly NIS 1,500 per month.
Israeli security officials warn that administrative recovery is matched by military rebuilding. In the past two months, IDF forces uncovered approximately 40 tunnel sites in northern Gaza. Intelligence assessments indicate that large sections of the tunnel network in central Gaza remain largely intact.
One security official told Channel 14 that Hamas appears capable of restoring tunnels faster than IDF engineering units can locate and destroy them. While Israeli forces demolish shafts above ground, operatives rebuild beneath the surface. Officials warn that defeating Hamas “with tweezers” will not dismantle the underground system.
Trump’s ceasefire required disarmament. Hamas has not disarmed. It is appointing governors, restoring ministries, collecting taxes, rebuilding tunnels, and positioning loyalists in security structures.
Beneath Gaza’s streets, construction continues. The purpose of those tunnels is not civil administration. Their purpose is infiltration into Israel and the murder of Israelis. Hamas is not only trying to preserve its terror tunnel network in Gaza, it is rebuilding it faster than the Israel Defense Forces can destroy it. According to a report by World Israel News citing multiple Israeli security officials, IDF engineering teams have uncovered around 40 underground tunnel sites in northern Gaza in recent months, yet intelligence assessments indicate the broader tunnel infrastructure in central Gaza remains largely intact and operational. The concern is that Hamas can repair and restore tunnels faster than Israel can locate and demolish them.
The same report states that Israeli military planners have not come close to completing destruction of the network beneath the Gaza Strip. One official told Channel 14 that the most troubling takeaway from the new intelligence is the terror organization’s ability to rebuild underground passages even as the IDF destroys sections above ground. Hamas reportedly has significant funds and a logistics system capable of preserving this underground strategic asset.
Israel’s campaign against the tunnels has been a central focus of its military operations, because these subterranean routes have historically been used to infiltrate Israel, hide weapons, store supplies, and position fighters. Gaza’s tunnel network has been extensive for years; in earlier conflicts Israel destroyed dozens of tunnels but Hamas continually rebuilt them, diverting civilian construction materials for military use.
The dynamic described in the recent report suggests that under the current ceasefire, Hamas’ ability to maintain and expand its tunnel infrastructure undermines the premise of disarmament in the Trump ceasefire plan. Rather than disappearing, the threat from below the ground persists, and the IDF is confronting a foe that can replace what is destroyed faster than the army can eliminate it.
As long as that underground network survives, Hamas’ rule in Gaza has not ended.
