Skip to main content

Hamas Takeover of the Gaza Strip (2007)

A short confrontation between Fatah and Hamas over control of the Gaza Strip, concluding with a complete victory for the latter, that took place in June 2007. It followed a period of growing tensions between the two organizations in the wake of Hamas’ victory in the 2006 Palestinian legislative elections. After the fighting ended, Fatah leader and PNA President Mahmoud Abbas dismissed Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh and his Hamas-dominated government, but the latter refused to relinquish control. As a result, two rival Palestinian governments were formed: a Hamas government in the Gaza Strip, led by Haniyeh, and a Fatah government in the Israeli-controlled West Bank, led by Abbas-appointed Salam Fayyad. Since 2007, several unsuccessful attempts have been made to form a Fatah-Hamas unity government.