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A minimum of 27 individuals have been killed in fierce exchanges between Hamas armed units and armed members of the Dughmush family in the Gaza urban area, marking one of the most violent intra-Palestinian conflicts since the end of large-scale Israeli military actions in the region.

Disguised Hamas fighters traded gunfire with clan fighters near the city's healthcare center, according to observers.

Official Statement

A high-ranking officer in the Hamas-run interior ministry stated that security forces encircled them and participated in intense combat to apprehend them. The ministry reported that eight of its personnel were killed in "a militant attack by a paramilitary force".

Medical sources confirmed that 19 Dughmush family fighters and eight Hamas fighters had been fatally injured since fighting began on the weekend.

Local Testimonies

Local residents reported that the violence broke out in the Tel al-Hawa district in southern Gaza City after a Hamas force of over 300 militants proceeded to assault a residential block where Dughmush militants were fortified.

Civilians described scenes of panic as numerous households escaped their dwellings under heavy gunfire, with many of them having been displaced multiple times during the war.

"In this instance civilians weren't running from Israeli assaults," a local inhabitant stated. "They were fleeing from their fellow Palestinians."

Existing Strain

The Dughmush family, a significant Gaza family, has long had a conflictual dynamic with the governing authority, and its militant members have engaged in violence with the organization on several occasions in the previous years.

The Hamas-controlled interior ministry declared its personnel were seeking to restore order, cautioning that "any armed activity outside the framework of the national struggle" would be dealt with firmly.

Conflicting Accounts

Both sides exchanged blame over who was responsible for triggering the clashes.

The organization earlier said that Dughmush fighters eliminated two of its combatants and wounded five more personnel, resulting in the group to commence a mission against them.

However, a source from the Dughmush family told local media that Hamas fighters had come to a building that previously functioned as the Jordanian medical center, where the clan had taken refuge after their residences in the al-Sabra neighbourhood were demolished in the latest Israeli offensive.

The source alleged that the movement tried to expel the tribe from the premises to set up a fresh headquarters for its forces there.

Wider Background

Hamas has recalled around 7,000 fighters of its security units to reestablish dominance over areas of Gaza recently vacated by Israeli forces, according to regional insiders.

Accounts reveal that Hamas militant squads have already deployed across various neighborhoods, with certain members in plain attire and the remainder in the blue uniforms of the Gaza law enforcement. The Hamas media office rejected that it was positioning militants in public areas.