JAKARTA - The Hamas militant group announced the dissolution of its government authority in the Gaza Strip, Palestine, after nearly two decades in power, paving the way for a transitional technocratic body to take over.
The move could mark a major milestone in the implementation of a US-backed Gaza peace plan, which also requires Hamas to disarm, after a war with Israel that killed more than 73,000 Palestinians.
At a press conference held in Gaza, Ismail Al Thawabta, head of the Gaza government media office, announced that the head of the Hamas "government emergency committee" had resigned, the body had been dissolved and that "its authority had been transferred to the National Committee for Gaza Administration," quoted from The National (6/7).
This paves the way for the NCAG, which was established under a UN Security Council resolution, to oversee the region during a transition period.
"Hamas has taken this step to make it clear to everyone that they have relinquished all authority and government power in Gaza and that they will not hinder efforts to manage Gaza or the work of the National Committee," said Gaza government spokesman Hazem Qassem, to The National.
"This is a call to the main bodies to come to Gaza, take over the responsibility of government, and end the difficult times that the people of Gaza have experienced as a result of the Israeli genocide," he said.
Qassem said the decision was made in coordination with mediators in Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey to ensure the implementation of the ceasefire and the US-backed Gaza reconstruction plan.
"We remain committed to implementing all that is outlined in the plan," he explained.
"This requires compliance with the Israeli occupation and stopping their violations and attacks in Gaza," Qassem said.
However, an Israeli official said the move was a "political maneuver", adding that "in practice, all officials remain in their posts and Hamas continues to rule".
Meanwhile, the head of the commissioner at NCAG Ali Shaath said the technocratic committee is "fully prepared to assume its national responsibilities as soon as the conditions and measures necessary for its work are available".
"These prerequisites are essential to establish the political, administrative and security environment necessary for the Committee to carry out its responsibilities effectively, in a manner that serves the interests of all Palestinian citizens in the Gaza Strip," he added on X.
Meanwhile, Nickolay Mladenov, the high representative of the Peace Council - the body tasked with overseeing the implementation of the peace plan - said on Monday that the announcement "underscores the importance of bringing the discussion of the road map to a successful conclusion".
"The sooner an agreement is reached on the outstanding implementation provisions, the sooner the NCAG can assume its responsibilities, the disarmament and withdrawal of Israeli forces can begin, and the large-scale reconstruction can begin," Mladenov wrote on social media.
The move comes days after mediators drafted a new proposal for the disarmament of Hamas that envisages the Israel-backed militia in Gaza handing over their weapons and rehabilitating some 10,000 members of the police force linked to Hamas in the area to enforce law and order in the enclave.
Hamas said the threat from the militia was one of the reasons for its refusal to fully disarm, along with Israel's failure to provide adequate humanitarian aid to the Palestinian territories in accordance with the terms of the peace plan.
According to the latest proposal, NCAG will also take over Hamas' "infrastructure", referring to bases, weapons factories, underground tunnels, and maps detailing their locations.
The NCAG was formed in January as part of a US-led plan, but Israel said its members would not be allowed into Gaza until Hamas was disarmed.
"Israel must at this point make concessions and allow the commission to enter Gaza," a source in Cairo told The National.
"Hamas has shown flexibility in this strange issue of disarmament," he said.
The mediators had previously proposed that another component of the UN-approved plan - an international stabilization force, which has not been formed - would oversee the delivery of Hamas weapons to storage sites.
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