Hamas took control of Gaza in June 2007 by defeating Fatah-aligned PA forces and seizing security installations and government buildings. The takeover followed months of factional clashes and ended a short-lived unity government, splitting PA governance between Hamas in Gaza and a Fatah-led administration in Ramallah.
From the 2006 election to armed clashes
Hamas won 74 of the legislature’s 132 seats in the January 2006 election. Disputes over ministries and control of security forces soon escalated. In April 2006, Hamas formed an Executive Force alongside the existing PA security services. A Saudi-brokered agreement in February 2007 produced a unity government, but armed clashes resumed within weeks.
By June 14, Hamas forces and armed groups had attacked and seized Fatah-controlled PA security installations and government buildings in Gaza, according to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights’ 2008 report on human-rights violations. The U.S. State Department’s 2007 Country Reports on Terrorism also records Hamas’s June takeover of Gaza.
Abbas forms an emergency government
On June 14, 2007, PA President Mahmoud Abbas dismissed Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh, dissolved the unity government, declared a state of emergency, and appointed an emergency government led by Salam Fayyad. Hamas remained in control on the ground in Gaza. The result was two rival governing authorities: Hamas’s administration in Gaza and the Fatah-led PA administration based in Ramallah.
The takeover gave Hamas control of Gaza’s security institutions and public administration. It also established the political division that shapes how Hamas governs and handles dissent, described in the account of Hamas rule and protest crackdowns.