RAFAH: Heads turned as the masked men with clubs walked down a Rafah street, part of a vigilante public security group set up by armed factions in Gaza after the civil police force went underground saying it was targeted by Israeli forces.

A group of nine of the men, their head bands reading “People’s Protection Committees” bound around ski masks or hoods, strode through a market place this week after first appearing around Rafah late last month.

“We want to control the street to ensure that there is still safety in the country... We are present in the streets to control the streets from all sources of trouble existing in the Palestinian street now,” one said.

The group was formed by the Hamas-run Interior Ministry, along with other political factions that had a street presence in Gaza, and was tasked with ensuring public order and stopping price hikes by market profiteers, he said. Spokespeople for Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and another major faction, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

When the vigilantes first appeared in markets, with some brandishing assault rifles, dozens of youths gathered around to whistle, clap and chant “God is Great” in support, witnesses said. But while some Rafah residents appeared to welcome the emergence of the People’s Protection Committees to tackle lawlessness and war profiteers, others seemed worried at the idea of armed, masked men taking over policing.

“Maybe if we had real policemen without masks, people who are known to the people, it would be more organised and more comfortable,” said a father-of-four.

The vigilantes feared being identified by Israel or by the clans of profiteers whose goods they had seized, one person said. People backing the vigilantes were worried that Israel would see them as Hamas supporters.

Those who voiced concern about them were worried about angering the group, or the factions that support it, they said.Officials from the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, have said uniformed municipal police in Gaza have refused to escort aid convoys after a number of police were killed in Israeli strikes. Israel’s military did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether it was attacking police.

Published in Dawn, March 7th, 2024