| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Jurisdiction | Gaza Strip |
| Headquarters | Gaza City |
| Agency executive |
|
| Parent agency | Hamas Authority |
The Interior Minister in the Gaza Strip is an office created in June 2007, following the Hamas takeover of the Gaza Strip, that left the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) in control only of the West Bank and Hamas in control of the Gaza Strip. The office is in charge of the security and statistics of the people in the Gaza Strip.
In June 2007, the Interior Minister in Gaza was Said Seyam, as part of the first Hamas government of June 2007 led by Ismail Haniyeh. After Seyam was assassinated in January 2009, during the Gaza War, Fathi Hamad was appointed to the office in April 2009. [1] Hamad continued in the position in the second Haniyeh government of September 2012.
The Interior Minister also leads the Hamas Public Affairs Department and is the director of Al-Aqsa TV, the Hamas-run television station. [1]
| No. | Portrait | Name (Birth–Death) | Term | Political party | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took office | Left office | Duration | |||||
| 1 |  | Said Seyam (1959–2009) | June 2007 | January 2009 | 1 year, 7 months | Hamas | |
| 2 | | Fathi Hamad (born 1961) | April 2009 | Incumbent | 15 years, 2 months | Hamas | |
The Palestinian Authority, officially known as the Palestinian National Authority or the State of Palestine, is the Fatah-controlled government body that exercises partial civil control over the Palestinian enclaves in the Israeli-occupied West Bank as a consequence of the 1993–1995 Oslo Accords. The Palestinian Authority controlled the Gaza Strip prior to the Palestinian elections of 2006 and the subsequent Gaza conflict between the Fatah and Hamas parties, when it lost control to Hamas; the PA continues to claim the Gaza Strip, although Hamas exercises de facto control. Since January 2013, the Palestinian Authority has used the name "State of Palestine" on official documents, although the United Nations continues to recognize the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) as the "representative of the Palestinian people".
Said Seyam, first name also spelled Saeed and Sayed and last name also spelled Siam, was the interior minister of the Palestinian government of March 2006. He joined Hamas and became one of its top commanders. During the 2008–2009 Gaza War, Seyam was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Jabalia. Seyam was the most senior Hamas member killed in the war, and the most senior Hamas figure killed by Israel since the death of Abdel Aziz al-Rantisi in April 2004.
The government of Palestine is the government of the Palestinian Authority or State of Palestine. The Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (EC) is the highest executive body of the Palestine Liberation Organization and acts as the government. Since June 2007, there have been two separate administrations in Palestine, one in the West Bank and the other in the Gaza Strip. The government on the West Bank was generally recognised as the Palestinian Authority Government. On the other hand, the government in the Gaza Strip claimed to be the legitimate government of the Palestinian Authority. Until June 2014, when the Palestinian Unity Government was formed, the government in the West Bank was the Fatah-dominated Palestinian government of 2013. In the Gaza Strip, the government was the Hamas government of 2012. Following two Fatah–Hamas Agreements in 2014, on 25 September 2014 Hamas agreed to let the PA Government resume control over the Gaza Strip and its border crossings with Egypt and Israel, but that agreement had broken down by June 2015, after President Abbas said the PA government was unable to operate in the Gaza Strip.
The Palestinian Authority Government of March 2006, also known as the First Haniyeh Government, was a government of the Palestinian National Authority (PA), led by Ismail Haniyeh, that was sworn in on 29 March 2006 and was followed by the Palestinian unity government of 17 March 2007. On 25 January 2006, Hamas won the election for the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) with 44.4% of the vote vs Fatah's 41.4%, and its leader Haniyeh formed the government, which comprised mostly Hamas members as well as four independents, after Fatah and other factions had refused to form a government with Hamas. It was the first Hamas-led PA government in the Palestinian territories.
The Fatah–Hamas conflict is an ongoing political and strategic conflict between Fatah and Hamas, the two main Palestinian political parties in the Palestinian territories, leading to the Hamas takeover of the Gaza Strip in June 2007. The reconciliation process and unification of Hamas and Fatah administrations remains unfinalized and the situation is deemed a frozen conflict.
The Second Haniyeh Government, also known as the Palestinian National Unity Government of March 2007, was a Palestinian Authority unity government headed by Ismail Haniyeh, the Prime Minister of the Palestinian National Authority that was formed on 17 March 2007 and dissolved on 14 June 2007.
The Ministry of Interior and National Security is the branch of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) cabinet in charge of the security and the statistics of the population of the State of Palestine. The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) is a sub-branch of the Interior Ministry that has the responsibility for the population and economic statistics of the Palestinian territories. Since Hamas' takeover of Gaza, the position of the Interior Ministry within the Palestinian Security Services is unclear.
Al-Aqsa TV is a television channel run by Hamas, which is based in the Gaza Strip. Its programs include news and propaganda promoting Hamas, children's shows, and religiously inspired entertainment. It is currently directed by Fathi Hamad, who is a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council and Interior Minister of the Gaza Strip. The channel is named after Al-Aqsa in Jerusalem.
Fathi Ahmad Hamad is a Palestinian politician and member of the Hamas political bureau. He was Interior Minister in the Hamas-administered Gaza Strip from 2009 to 2014.
Islamism in the Gaza Strip involves efforts to promote and impose Islamic laws and traditions in the Gaza Strip. The influence of Islamic groups in the Gaza Strip has grown since the 1980s. Following Hamas' victory in the 2006 Palestinian elections and a conflict with supporters of the rival Fatah party, Hamas took complete control of the Gaza Strip, and declared the "end of secularism and heresy in the Gaza Strip". For the first time since the Sudanese coup of 1989 that brought Omar al-Bashir to power, a Muslim Brotherhood group rules a significant geographic territory. Gaza human-rights groups accuse Hamas of restricting many freedoms.
Events in the year 2009 in the Palestinian territories.
Events in the year 2007 in the Palestinian territories.
The Hamas government of 2012 was the second de facto Hamas government in the Gaza Strip since the takeover of the Gaza Strip by Hamas in 2007. It was formed on 26 August 2012 and approved by the Gaza-based Hamas members of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC). As with the first Hamas government, this government was led by Ismail Haniyeh.
The Hamas government of June 2007 led by Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas was the de facto government in the Gaza Strip after a fierce inter-factional Palestinian warfare in the Gaza Strip, in which Hamas ousted Fatah from the Gaza Strip. The Hamas government was not appointed by PA President Mahmoud Abbas nor approved by the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC). It exercised de facto rule over the Gaza Strip, and was not recognised by any foreign government.
Hamas has governed the Gaza Strip in Palestine since its takeover of the region from rival party Fatah in June 2007. Hamas' government was led by Ismail Haniyeh from 2007 until February 2017, when Haniyeh was replaced as leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip by Yahya Sinwar. As of November 2023, Yahya Sinwar continues to be the leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip. In January 2024, due to the ongoing Israel–Hamas war, Israel said that Hamas lost control of most of the northern part of the Gaza Strip. In May 2024, Hamas regrouped in the north.
The prime minister of the Palestinian National Authority was the position of the official head of government of the Palestinian Authority government, which operated between 2003 and January 2013, when it was officially transformed into the State of Palestine. Some still refer to the position of the prime minister of the Gaza Strip as the prime minister of the Palestinian National Authority.
The Battle of Gaza or the Gaza civil war was a brief civil war between Fatah and Hamas that took place in the Gaza Strip from 10 to 15 June 2007. It was a prominent event in the Fatah–Hamas conflict, centered on the struggle for power after Fatah lost the 2006 Palestinian legislative election. The battle resulted in the dissolution of the unity government and the de facto division of the Palestinian territories into two entities: the West Bank governed by the Palestinian National Authority (PNA), and the Gaza Strip governed by Hamas. Hamas fighters took control of the Gaza Strip, while Fatah officials were either taken as prisoners, executed, or expelled. The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights reported that at least 161 people were killed and more than 700 were wounded during the fighting.
Ismail Haniyeh is a Palestinian politician who is widely considered to be the chief political leader of Hamas, which has governed the Gaza Strip since 2007. He is the current chairman of the Hamas Political Bureau. As of 2023, he lives in Qatar.
The Palestinian Security Services (PSS) are the armed forces and intelligence agencies of the State of Palestine. They comprise several institutions, notably the Security Forces and the Police. The President of the Palestinian National Authority is Commander-in-Chief of the Palestinian Forces.
The Hamas government of October 2016 is a faction of the Palestinian government based in Gaza and is effectively the third Hamas dominated government in the Gaza Strip since the takeover of Gaza by Hamas. On October 17, 2016 Supreme Administrative Committee, which is in the process of building progressive ministries in Gaza, reshuffles active ministries and repositions of 16 ministers and director generals in government institutions. The government in Gaza is composed of ministers, governors-general and other high-level officials linked directly to the Ramallah administration. Initially, it was speculated that the formation of the Hamas government in 2016 was an attempt by Ismail Haniya to return to full Hamas control of Gaza. As part of government reform, it was decided to expand the Ministry of Planning. The United States, Canada, the European Union, Japan and Israel classify Hamas as a state institution in Gaza associated with the PLO government and recognize the PLO government as the legitimate government of Gaza territory. The Hamas government is recognized by the Palestine State Administration in Ramallah.
