Hamas Implodes From Within: Feuds, Iran Ties, and Power Struggles Threaten Gaza Ceasefire.
While President Trump remains bullish that a ceasefire in Gaza could be inked “within days,” Hamas is imploding from within, threatening to derail any hope of ending the war. Power-hungry factions, Iranian proxies, and deep tribal rivalries are now exposed as Hamas’s leadership tears itself apart over exile deals, disarmament, and who gets to call the shots.
A Mediator They Hate
At the heart of the chaos is Bishara Bahbah, the Palestinian-American mediator handpicked by the U.S. to broker the ceasefire. Instead of serving as a bridge, Bahbah has become a lightning rod for Hamas’s anger, with senior officials accusing him of being too close to the Americans and too willing to concede.
Iran’s Man in Hamas: Zaher Jabarin
One of Hamas’s most dangerous figures, Zaher Jabarin, now leads what Hamas calls “operations in the West Bank”—a Jordanian-imposed term to erase Jewish ties to Judea and Samaria since 1951. Jabarin, who inherited the mantle from Iran-backed Saleh al-Arouri, is now the head of the Iranian faction within Hamas and is determined to sabotage any deal requiring Hamas’s disarmament or the exile of its senior terror commanders from Gaza.
Internal Struggles Within Hamas Threaten Negotiations and Strain Ties with U.S. Mediator Bishara Bahbah
— ME24 - Middle East 24 (@MiddleEast_24) July 2, 2025
An Arab source reveals that Zaher Jabarin, leader of Hamas in the West Bank and head of its Iranian-aligned faction, strongly opposes any deal involving Hamas’s exile from… pic.twitter.com/f8yOvoynuq
According to i24 News, Jabarin has been locked in a bitter feud with Khalil al-Hayya, who was appointed to lead negotiations with Israel. Al-Hayya, deputy to the late Yahya Sinwar, represents Gaza’s leadership, while Jabarin embodies Judea and Samaria’s Hamas wing. The friction is nothing new to those who understand the Arab world, like Dr. Mordechai Kedar of Bar-Ilan University, who has repeatedly explained that “Palestine” was never a united entity but a collection of tribal groups with deep cultural and social divides. The stark differences between Gaza Arabs and those in Judea and Samaria mean that these clashes within Hamas are as predictable as sunrise.
Threats, Resignations, and Arafat’s Ghost
Sources report that Jabarin threatened to resign from Hamas entirely unless Mohammad Darwish was installed as head of the Shura Council, effectively making Darwish his puppet. Hamas, terrified of splitting further, caved in, installing Darwish in the role Jabarin demanded.
Jabarin’s position is clear: Hamas must never disarm, pointing to Yasser Arafat’s precedent of preserving weapons after fleeing Beirut in the 1980s as his guiding principle. For Jabarin and the Iranian-backed faction, holding onto rockets and rifles is more important than peace for the people of Gaza.
Edan Alexander’s Release Sparks a Firestorm
The divisions within Hamas exploded further when al-Hayya agreed to Bahbah’s request to release American-Israeli Edan Alexander, captured during Hamas’s October 7 terror attacks, as a gesture to the U.S. Jabarin and Hamas’s military commanders in Gaza vehemently opposed the move but ultimately folded under al-Hayya’s directive. Now, furious commanders accuse Bahbah of being a traitor and a fake mediator.
#ICYMI Bishara Bahbah, Who Mediates Between U.S. Administration And Hamas, Tells Of Direct Contact, Meetings With Hamas Official Ghazi Hamad, Who Promised More October 7 Attacks pic.twitter.com/mbyIm15tBW
— MEMRI (@MEMRIReports) June 29, 2025
Hamas Eats Its Own
Adding fuel to the fire, Tahar al-Nunu, another senior Hamas member, briefly blamed Hamas publicly for the negotiation breakdown before being forced to retract his statement after a tense call from Razi Hamad in Turkey, another Hamas leader aligned with Jabarin.
Who’s Really in Charge Now?
In the chaos, all eyes have turned to Ezzedin al-Haddad, the top commander of Hamas’s military wing in Gaza, who, sources claim, is now the de facto decision-maker within Hamas. Al-Haddad is reportedly maintaining back-channel contacts with Egypt, offering a thin lifeline to the ceasefire hopes Trump is banking on.
LAST ONE LEFT: The most senior Hams figure left alive in Gaza is Izz ad-Din Haddad.
— Raylan Givens (@JewishWarrior13) June 1, 2025
Haddad is considered one of the few secret partners who knew about and planned 10/7 and was responsible, among other things, for holding hostages in Gaza.
Knock, knock..... https://t.co/p8dhpRRnyz pic.twitter.com/sAP8Gcx3l0
The Bottom Line
Hamas’s internal fractures—fueled by Iranian interests, tribal rivalries, and ego battles—may become the single biggest obstacle to ending the war in Gaza. While Israel and the U.S. press for a deal that would exile Hamas leaders, disarm the terror group, and free the hostages, the reality on the ground is that Hamas cannot even agree on who should speak for them, let alone whether they should stop firing rockets.
Until Hamas decides who is in charge—and whether they serve the people of Gaza or Tehran—the prospect of peace remains hostage to the terror group’s own dysfunction.
