‘Popular Forces’: Who are the Gaza gangsters being armed by Israel?

Description

According to Dr Andreas Krieg, the militia is too small, criminally tainted and politically toxic to serve as a viable governing force.

“Their limited size and lack of legitimacy among Palestinians, compounded by their open collaboration with Israeli forces, render them structurally incapable of administering territory or managing civil affairs in a sustainable way,” he said.

Krieg added that Israel had no incentive to formalise relations with a group whose existence could disrupt broader diplomatic efforts with Arab states.

“But hashtag#Israel has a long track record of inadvertently creating surrogate Frankenstein monsters in the short-term that then develop lives of their own.”

Period	12 Jun 2025
Held at	Middle East Eye, United States