Hamas seeks role for its police in Gaza ahead of disarmament talks

Hamas is seeking to incorporate its 10,000 police officers into a new U.S.-backed Palestinian administration for Gaza, sources say, a demand likely to be opposed by Israel as the militant group debates whether to surrender its arms.



Islamist group Hamas retains control of just under half of Gaza following an October ceasefire deal brokered by U.S. President Donald Trump. The agreement ties further Israeli troop withdrawals to Hamas giving up its weapons.



The 20-point plan to end the war, now in its second phase, calls for the governance of Gaza to be handed to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, a Palestinian technocratic body with U.S. oversight that is meant to exclude Hamas.



In a letter to staff on Sunday, seen by Reuters, Gaza's Hamas-run government urged its more than 40,000 civil servants and security personnel to cooperate with the NCAG but assured them it was working to incorporate them into the new government.