Popular Forces

The Popular Forces, also known as the Anti-Terror Service, is a Palestinian anti-Hamas armed group active in the Gaza Strip which was founded by Yasser Abu Shabab during the Gaza war. Following Yasser Abu Shabab's death on 4 December 2025, Ghassan Duhine proclaimed himself the new leader. The Popular Forces are Israeli-backed and allegedly Islamic State (IS)-linked. The group, which has been described as a gang or militia, is made up of approximately 500–700 men who operate in eastern Rafah and eastern Khan Yunis. The Popular Army – Northern Forces militia of the northern Gaza Strip, led by Ashraf al-Mansi, also reportedly operates as part of the Popular Forces. Israeli support for the Popular Forces was only revealed in June 2025, but the group has been active since the beginning of the Rafah offensive in May 2024. The Popular Forces were able to come to power in Rafah during the Gaza war amid the power vacuum left by a weakened Hamas. The Popular Forces controlled territory and aid routes near the Egypt–Gaza border, and were accused of looting humanitarian aid entering the Gaza Strip, described by a United Nations official as "grand larceny". The group maintained that it protects civilians from "the terror of the Hamas government" and denies large-scale looting. In June 2025, the Popular Forces announced that they were helping to protect aid shipments sent to distribution sites run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), and aid truck drivers told CNN that Abu Shabab had furnished men to protect aid convoys. In the same month, the Popular Forces and the Israel Defense Forces were accused of shooting and killing multiple Gazans seeking aid at a GHF aid site. Israeli officials acknowledged sending weapons to the Popular Forces, as part of a program of arming and supporting anti-Hamas elements...