Post-conflict zones, like nature, abhors a vacuum. And so it is in Gaza, where Hamas is making efforts to establish some sort of control in the areas now vacated by the Israeli military. Reports of clashes with non-Hamas clans that had enjoyed some assistance from the Israeli military are emerging, as the nature, composition and rules of engagement of the stabilisation force remain largely unknown.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s two-year military campaign in response to Hamas’s abhorrent terrorist attack of 7 October set itself two aims – the return and recovery of the hostages taken by Hamas and other militant groups and the destruction of Hamas. He can rightly claim to have achieved the first of those goals, but the second remains, and may well continue to remain, elusive. Make no mistake, Hamas has been grievously wounded, and its Iranian supporter has had its strategic wings clipped.