![\"[FILE](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/659870.jpeg\"\/)
[FILE PHOTO] PALESTINIANS DEMAND an end to war, chanting anti-Hamas slogans, in Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip. (credit: REUTERS)<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s very hard to explain the scale of the security, political and social control that Hamas asserts,\u201d he noted. \u201cFor example, social and trade associations, such as the chamber of commerce and the industry unions, are in one way or another operating under Hamas\u2019s oversight and are subject to its authority. That means they cannot say or do what they want,\u201d he charged.<\/p>\n
The protest movement, described as the “June 26 revolution,” was organized mainly by social and political activists, social media influencers, and some Palestinian journalists living abroad, most of them based in Egypt. It was launched primarily through social media platforms, with frequent announcements, posts, and videos criticizing Hamas\u2019s rule and urging Gazans to go out and voice opposition to the grave humanitarian conditions and continued Hamas control.<\/p>\n
The anti-Hamas campaign leaders encouraged Gazans in the Strip to demand their rights, insisting that \u201cchange will come from the people themselves.\u201d A prominent figure pushing the protest, Abed al-Hamid Abed al-Ati, told the Post in an interview prior to June 26 that \u201cthe aim was to give hope to Gazans and show them a path to dignity and normal life, as no one else is stepping in.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hamas closely monitored the activists\u2019 plans and, from the outset, sought to suppress the movement. Some protest organizers received messages from Hamas conveyed through their family members in the Strip, demanding that they withdraw from the campaign. Other relatives were threatened with death, Palestinian sources said.<\/p>\n
Hamas also made extensive efforts to curb the “June 26 campaign” <\/a>through public denunciations and shaming of the movement and its supporters. The terror group accused protest leaders and activists of being backed by Israel, a claim they denied, and worked to discredit them in the media.<\/p>\n Another factor that some Palestinians argue contributed to the protest\u2019s failure was the reaction to the campaign in Israel ahead of Friday\u2019s events. One Palestinian figure involved in organizing the protest explained to the Post that when Israeli media outlets and public figures began to circulate the campaign messages and endorse the idea promoted by it, with some even encouraging Gazans to rise up against Hamas, it did more harm than good.<\/p>\n He said that it helped Hamas embolden its narrative that \u201cthe protest is pushed by the Zionist enemy that wants to destroy Gaza and the Palestinian people.\u201d<\/p>\n Another Palestinian resident mentioned the video posted by the Israeli Agriculture Minister Avi Dichter, a day before the planned demonstration, noting, \u201cHe (the minister) believes his words were against Hamas, but unfortunately, his message served Hamas.\u201d<\/p>\n