Gaza Turmoil: How the 2007 Fatah–Hamas Split Happened
In June 2007 Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip after days of fighting with Fatah. The split that followed still defines Palestinian politics.
The division of the Palestinian territories into a Hamas-run Gaza and a Fatah-led West Bank is so familiar now that it is easy to forget how quickly it happened. In a few days of fighting in June 2007, Hamas routed forces loyal to Fatah and President Mahmoud Abbas across the Gaza Strip.
The road to civil war
Hamas won the Palestinian legislative elections of January 2006, defeating Fatah, the movement that had dominated Palestinian politics for decades. Israel, the United States and the European Union refused to deal with a Hamas-led government unless it recognised Israel, renounced violence and accepted previous agreements. Aid was cut and the Palestinian Authority's finances collapsed.
Tensions between the two movements turned into street battles through late 2006. Saudi mediation produced the Mecca Agreement in February 2007 and a short-lived national unity government. Suspicion ran deep on both sides. Reports later described US-backed efforts to strengthen security forces loyal to Fatah strongman Mohammed Dahlan in preparation for a confrontation with Hamas.
The takeover
In June 2007 fighting erupted again. Hamas forces overran Fatah-controlled security headquarters, and more than a hundred people were killed. Abbas dissolved the unity government and declared a state of emergency, appointing a new government in Ramallah. From then on, the Palestinians had two administrations.
The aftermath
Israel, with Egypt's cooperation, tightened a blockade on Gaza that shaped the lives of its two million people for years. Repeated wars between Israel and Hamas followed, culminating in the devastating war that began after Hamas's attack on Israel on 7 October 2023.
Reconciliation efforts between Fatah and Hamas, brokered at various times by Egypt, Qatar, Algeria and China, produced agreements on paper but never a reunified government. The split of 2007 remains one of the main obstacles to any Palestinian political strategy, and to any peace process.