Hamas–Doghmush Conflict, 2025

The Hamas–Doghmush conflict 2025 is a violent armed clashes that erupted in October 2025 between the Hamas movement, which governs the Gaza Strip, and the Doghmush clan, one of Gaza’s most powerful and influential families. The confrontation occurred shortly after a ceasefire temporarily halted the Gaza war and marked one of the most severe internal Palestinian armed conflicts in recent years. The fighting centred mainly in the Tel al-Hawa and Sabra neighbourhoods of Gaza City, resulting in significant casualties, widespread displacement of civilians, and renewed concerns over Hamas’s internal security measures during the fragile post-war period.

Background

Since seizing control of the Gaza Strip in 2007, Hamas has periodically launched crackdowns against individuals and groups accused of collaborating with Israel or challenging its authority. The group’s military courts have conducted summary trials and executions of alleged collaborators, acts repeatedly condemned by international human rights organisations as extrajudicial killings. Hamas, however, has justified these actions as essential to maintaining internal order and national security.
In the months preceding the 2025 conflict, Gaza had endured extensive devastation due to the 2024–2025 Gaza war, after which a ceasefire agreement took effect in October 2025. According to regional and international reports, immediately following the ceasefire, Hamas redeployed nearly 7,000 fighters to reassert control over the Strip, re-establish security institutions, and arrest individuals suspected of dissent or espionage. Dozens of people were detained, including members of rival political factions and clans hostile to Hamas.

The Doghmush clan, a large and armed family of Turkish origin settled in Gaza since the early 20th century, became a key target in this renewed campaign. The clan, historically linked to Fatah and militant groups such as the Popular Resistance Committees and the Army of Islam, has a long record of confrontation with Hamas. It had been involved in high-profile incidents, including the kidnapping of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit (2006) and British journalist Alan Johnston (2007), and its leaders were accused by Hamas of criminal activity and collaboration with Israel.
Tensions escalated after the execution of Saleh Doghmush, a senior clan figure allegedly accused of maintaining contact with Israeli authorities. The clan denied the allegations, accusing Hamas of exploiting the ceasefire to consolidate its power and eliminate internal rivals.

Outbreak of Clashes

Violence broke out on 10–11 October 2025 when Hamas security forces launched operations in Tel al-Hawa, an area in southern Gaza City regarded as a Doghmush stronghold. According to Hamas’s account, the clashes began after Doghmush fighters ambushed a Hamas patrol, killing two militants—including the son of a senior Hamas intelligence commander—and wounding several others.
In response, Hamas deployed over 300 armed operatives, supported by units from the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, to storm Doghmush-held residential areas. Heavy gunfire ensued around the Jordanian hospital compound, where members of the clan had taken refuge after their homes were destroyed during the Gaza war. The fighting involved automatic weapons, rocket-propelled grenades, and improvised explosive devices, spreading panic across neighbouring districts.
Eyewitnesses described scenes of chaos as families fled under intense crossfire. Civilians reported that “people were running from their own people, not from Israeli bombardment.” Humanitarian sources indicated that dozens of families were displaced within hours, with both Hamas forces and clan fighters accused of firing indiscriminately.
The Hamas-run Interior Ministry justified the operation as a campaign to “restore order” and eliminate “criminal elements,” while clan representatives accused Hamas of committing a “massacre” and forcibly evicting residents to occupy strategic buildings for its own use.

Casualties and Humanitarian Impact

Estimates of casualties vary. According to different media and medical reports, between 27 and 64 people were killed, including 6–12 Hamas militants and 19–52 Doghmush fighters, along with several civilians. Palestinian journalist Saleh al-Jafrawi was among those killed while covering the fighting; he was later found dead in a truck, still wearing his press vest.
Following the clashes, Hamas security forces arrested at least 60 Doghmush clan members, transferring them to internal security facilities for interrogation. Local residents reported widespread fear and restrictions on movement within southern Gaza City. The confrontation further strained Gaza’s already fragile humanitarian situation, with limited access to medical care, clean water, and shelter for displaced civilians.

Historical Context of the Doghmush Clan

The Doghmush family, whose name is also rendered as Doğmuş, Dughmush, or Dogmosh, migrated from Turkey to Gaza in the early 20th century. Over the decades, the clan became deeply entrenched in Gaza’s economic and political networks. Members have been affiliated with multiple Palestinian factions, including Fatah, Hamas, and extremist offshoots such as Jaysh al-Islam (Army of Islam), an organisation with alleged ties to al-Qaeda.
In 2008, severe clashes occurred between the Doghmush clan and Hamas after the killing of a Hamas police officer. The incident resulted in ten clan members’ deaths and marked one of the most violent internal outbreaks since Hamas seized control of Gaza. The 2025 clashes thus represented a continuation of this longstanding rivalry, now intensified by post-war instability.
During the 2024–2025 Gaza war, the Doghmush clan suffered devastating losses, including 44 family members killed in Israeli airstrikes on 15 November 2023 and more than 100 casualties during further bombings in December. This destruction weakened the clan militarily but did not eliminate its armed capacity, which Hamas viewed as a threat to its monopoly of power.

Reactions and Aftermath

The Hamas–Doghmush conflict drew attention from Palestinian and regional observers as a reflection of Gaza’s internal volatility during the post-war transition. Palestinian human rights groups and independent journalists criticised Hamas for excessive use of force, collective punishment, and arbitrary arrests, while Hamas maintained that the operation was a security necessity to prevent criminal and collaborationist elements from undermining the ceasefire.
Local residents described the clashes as “a civil war within a war,” expressing despair at internal violence occurring so soon after the Israeli–Palestinian ceasefire. The Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate condemned the killing of Saleh al-Jafrawi, calling for accountability and protection of media workers operating in conflict zones.
By 19 October 2025, Hamas had issued an ultimatum demanding the surrender of all remaining armed clan members, warning that those who resisted would face “severe punishment.” The group subsequently claimed full control over Tel al-Hawa and the neighbouring Sabra area, asserting that “order has been restored.”

Broader Significance

The 2025 Hamas–Doghmush conflict underscored the fragile governance structure in post-war Gaza and the persistent factionalism within Palestinian society. It illustrated the challenges Hamas faces in balancing internal control with public legitimacy after prolonged conflict with Israel.
The episode also reflected the historical pattern of clan-based power struggles in Gaza, where tribal allegiances, economic interests, and political factions frequently intersect. For international observers, the fighting raised concerns about the potential fragmentation of Gaza’s political landscape and the impact of internal strife on broader peace and reconstruction efforts.