SadaNews Report: Who Will Manage Gaza After the Government Follow-Up Committee's Self- Dissolution?

SadaNews Exclusive - The Government Follow-Up Committee in Gaza, which adopted the title of the Government Emergency Committee during the war in the sector, announced its self-dissolution and the resignation of its head, Mohammed Al-Farra, from his position, submitting a resignation letter to the mediators in Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey. This step was seen by Hamas as significant in the context of relinquishing governance and control of the sector in favor of the National Committee for Managing Gaza.

Hamas and the government media office did not clarify who would take over the governmental tasks, especially since the National Committee formed by the Peace Council has not yet decided to enter Gaza to assume governance.

While observers in Gaza view this as a significant step, they argue that it is essentially symbolic due to the absence of any entity to take over. Others questioned why the resignation was submitted to mediators as if they had become responsible for the reality in Gaza, clearly ignoring the role of the Palestinian Authority.

Informed sources tell SadaNews that the decision to dissolve the committee was made by the leadership of Hamas inside and outside the Gaza Strip, and that the mediators were notified in advance about this step, welcoming it and considering it an important move demonstrating the movement's seriousness regarding progress in the Gaza agreement, particularly regarding U.S. President Donald Trump's plan.

The sources indicated that there is a consensus internally for the National and Islamic Forces Follow-up Committee to oversee the government work, but there has yet to be an agreement on that, clarifying that this does not imply a constitutional or governmental vacuum.

According to some sources that spoke with SadaNews, the resigning committee will temporarily continue to manage the sector until the National Committee officially takes on its responsibilities.

Hamas's move faces significant complications due to Israel's insistence, along with the Peace Council and its senior representative Nikolai Mladenov, on disarming the movement as a condition for the National Committee to assume its duties in the sector.

Mladenov said that today’s announcement in Gaza underscores the importance of successfully completing the roadmap negotiations and that the sooner an agreement on the remaining implementation items is reached, the quicker the Gaza Management Committee will be able to take on its responsibilities. He emphasized that expediting an agreement will speed up the disarmament of weapons, the withdrawal of Israeli forces, and the launch of reconstruction efforts.

Meanwhile, the head of the Gaza Management Committee, Ali Shath, stated that his committee is ready to assume its national responsibilities once the necessary resources and possibilities are available for its work, noting that the essential requirements for the committee's success include the existence of a single authority and one law with a clear reference, and a single weapon under this authority, ensuring the provision of the necessary political, administrative, and security environment for the committee to effectively perform its duties, aiming to meet the interests of our Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip.

Sources indicate that mediators will work to find approaches that ensure the committee’s entry into the sector as soon as possible. However, many observers doubt the feasibility of this given Mladenov and the Peace Council's insistence on their vision regarding the future of Gaza and controlling the weaponry as a prerequisite.

Currently, there is no effective handover from the resigning committee amid the accumulated governmental issues over the years and its inability to regularly pay employee salaries. It seems there is no party capable of bearing such burdens in light of the financial crises that factions, including Hamas, have suffered from in recent years, which have significantly worsened during the war.

It is clear that the current situation in Gaza will persist without any real progress in any of the issues related to the sector, especially as the resignation of the current governmental committee, as the facts indicate, will not provide anything tangible.