>>212518579
A senior officer in Hamas's security forces has told the BBC the Palestinian armed group has lost about 80% of its control over the Gaza Strip and that armed clans are filling the void.
The lieutenant colonel said Hamas's command and control system had collapsed due to months of Israeli strikes that have devastated the group's political, military and security leadership.
The officer was wounded in the first week of the war, which began after the Hamas-led attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, and has since stepped away from his duties for health reasons.
He shared several voice messages with the BBC on condition of anonymity.
In the messages, the officer painted a picture of Hamas's internal disintegration and the near-total collapse of security across Gaza, which the group governed before the conflict.
"Let's be realistic here - there's barely anything left of the security structure. Most of the leadership, about 95%, are now dead... The active figures have all been killed," he said.
"About the security situation, let me be clear: it has completely collapsed. Totally gone. There's no control anywhere," he said.
"People looted the most powerful Hamas security apparatus (Ansar), the complex which Hamas used to rule Gaza.
"They looted everything, the offices - mattresses, even zinc panels - and no-one intervened. No police, no security."
The officer said a consequence of the security vacuum was gangs or armed clans were "everywhere".
"They could stop you, kill you. No one would intervene. Anyone who tried to act on their own, like organising resistance against thieves, was bombed by Israel within half an hour.
"So, the security situation is zero. Hamas's control is zero. There's no leadership, no command, no communication. Salaries are delayed, and when they do arrive, they're barely usable. Some die just trying to collect them. It's total collapse."
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