The Palestinian National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), established in January in accordance with US President Donald J. Trump's plan to end the Israel-Hamas war, is about to assume its responsibilities in the Gaza Strip.

The NCAG's main mission is to manage the day-to-day operations of the civil service and administration in the Gaza Strip in the aftermath of the war, which erupted after the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel.

The committee, whose members are described as independent technocrats, is headed by Ali Shaath, a top official of the Fatah faction headed by Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas. Shaath previously held severalpositionsin the PA, including Deputy Minister of Planning and International Cooperation and Undersecretary at the Ministry of Transport.

The NCAG is expected to start operating in the Gaza Strip even though Hamas continues to control nearly half of it, with more than 90% of the population still under the terror group's jurisdiction. The other half is controlled by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

Although Hamas has expressed itswillingnessto hand over its government institutions to the NCAG, there areindicationsthat the terror group is seeking to control the new committee and turn it into a Hamas puppet.

The NCAG is already underpressurefrom the terror group to incorporate thousands of Hamas terrorists into a newly established Palestinian police force in the Gaza Strip. Hamas, in addition, is seeking to ensure that its civil servants be placed on the payroll of the NCAG.

Sources close to the NCAGrevealedthat Hamas "continues to insist that its security personnel remain in service within the agencies that will operate under the committee's (NCAG) leadership," according to the London-based newspaper,Asharq Al-Awsat. "The sourcessaidthis issue further complicates the committee's ability to assume its duties in an orderly manner, explaining that Hamas, by insisting on certain demands related to its security employees and police forces, seeks to impose its presence in one way or another within the committee's work. There is a prevailing sense within the committee and other parties that Hamas is determined, by all means, to keep its members within the new administrative framework overseeing the Gaza Strip."

The news about the newly established Palestinian governance committee's preparations to enter the Gaza Strip coincided with reports that Hamas isreassertingits control in areas under its control.

"Gazans say Hamas is again extending its control over security, tax revenue, and government services, raising questions about its long-term strategy, and whether it is prepared to give up its weapons and authority, as now required undere the second stage of Donald Trump's peace plan," theBBCreportedon February 18.

Mohammed Diab, an activist in the Gaza Strip,notedthat Hamas "regained control of more than 90% of the areas where it is present. Its policies and security agencies have returned, and are now present in the streets, controlling crime and pursuing those it lables as collaborators and people with opinions. Citizens must go to the Hamas authorities for indentiy cards or health procedures, and it is also reasserting control over the judiciary and courts."

Source: Gatestone Institute :: Articles