Yasser Abu Shabab has hit the headlines for an anti-government Knesset opposition tip-off. Israel Hayom: “From Hamas prisoner to militia leader: Israel’s Palestinian collaborator.”
Maariv was no less light-hearted: “Hamas prison escapee: Meet the militia leader Israel is arming in Gaza.” “Israeli security officials confirmed today that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered the Civil Administration to distribute weapons to gangs in the southern Gaza Strip, some of which have ties to Salafist groups, and the security apparatus says the goal is to reduce Hamas’s power in the Strip.”
“Among the gangs, a group led by Yasser Abu Shabab stands out, born in 1993 and until October 2023 a prisoner of Hamas on charges of theft and drugs, who escaped following an Israeli raid on security facilities at the beginning of the war. An internal UN memo, leaked to the Washington Post, described Abu Shabab as “the most important element behind the systematic looting of aid” in the Karm Abu Salem area, and that its activity is conducted under “sponsorship of the Israeli army”.
According to Israeli media, it is estimated that the Abu Shabab group is composed of around 100/200 armed men and that its task was to “define a “safe zone” east of Rafah“.
Among the operations filmed on members of the Abu Shabab group: “searches of homes and dismantling resistance explosives.” According to Palestinian sources, the group has “committed assassinations against resistance fighters, from whom they have stolen weapons.”
On June 6, Yasser Abu Shabab claimed that his members provide security for humanitarian aid convoys, but reports published by local sources indicate that his members have repeatedly looted humanitarian aid in Gaza and sold these goods for dozens of times the original price.
It is worth noting that Yasser Abu Shabab is a member of a large clan in the southern Gaza Strip and is accused of running a large drug trade and having ties to terrorist groups such as ISIS. The people under Abu Shabab’s command are estimated to number around 200 and have sometimes been seen wearing uniforms similar to those of the Israeli army.
The weapons that Israel has provided to Abu Shabab’s group include those that the IDF has captured from Palestinian resistance groups during operations in the Gaza Strip, including Kalashnikov rifles. Tel Aviv’s military assistance to this group under Abu Shabab’s command has been carried out without the approval of the Israeli security cabinet. This action was directed by the Israeli security services and approved by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Yasser Abu Shabab to the Wall Street Journal tried to deny his connection to Israel: “I have no support from Israel and I have the legitimacy of the Palestinian National Authority.” A resistance security official to Arab Television complained: “Israel has recruited and armed a group of perpetrators under the command of Yasser Abu Shabab in eastern Rafah, and the Abu Shabab group is estimated to consist of about 100 armed men. Israel seeks to establish what it calls a “safe zone” in eastern Rafah under the administration of the Abu Shabab group. We have evidence of Abu Shabab’s crimes.”
Channel i24NEWS went so far as to say: “An Arab state is involved in training Yasser Abu Shabab’s militia.”
Security Affairs Correspondent Doron Kadosh reports that Yasser Abu al-Shabaab is the only militia with which Israel is collaborating at this stage. There are no other entities in Gaza that are collaborating with it in a similar way. He also said on Army Radio: “Those who have been following Palestinian networks and media closely in recent days should not be too surprised by Lieberman’s statements, which state that Israel is collaborating with and even arming armed militias in Gaza.”
“For several days, Palestinian media have been reporting that a man named Yasser Abu Shabab, a Bedouin from Gaza who is not associated with Hamas, has an armed militia active in the Rafah area under the protection of the Israeli military. This armed group operates under the patronage of the Israeli army, in areas controlled by the army and with the support of Israel, and participates in the fight against Hamas”.
“Hamas, for its part, has declared “war” on this militia affiliated with Abu Shabab, and even published a video several days ago showing the detonation of an explosive device that targeted elements of that militia and killed several in Rafah, as well as publishing videos of attacks on IDF forces. According to Hamas, this armed group represents a threat no less dangerous than the IDF and is a legitimate target for them.”
“It seems that this is the current Israeli plan (although it came 20 months late) for what is called “the day after” in the Gaza Strip – and according to what was agreed at the political level, a local Palestinian party that does not belong to Hamas or Fatah has been identified, ready to cooperate with Israel.”
“By the way, I am not sure how closely Yasser Abu Shabab is linked to “ISIS,” as Lieberman described it. Its fighters have been fighting in the Sinai in recent years against ISIS-affiliated cells, so if it is a group that has fought ISIS, I do not believe it also belongs to this organization. What is certain is that they are not Israelis. They are Gazans, Palestinians, against Hamas – and the question remains: what are the alternatives?”
Antonio Albanese e Graziella Giangiulio
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