In a rare and blistering public rebuke from within Gaza, political activist and former Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) official Jamil Abdul-Nabi has called for Hamas to disband, holding the group directly responsible for “the destruction of our people” following its October 7 attack on Israel. Speaking to Saudi Arabia’s Al-Arabiya Network, Abdul-Nabi said Hamas has failed in resistance, governance, and war — and must “pay for its sins” by disappearing from the Palestinian political scene altogether.

Abdul-Nabi, who spent a year in an Israeli prison cell with senior Hamas figure Ghazi Hamad, painted a grim picture of public sentiment in Gaza. “I’m not exaggerating when I say that throughout the Gaza Strip, not even one of every 100 – or even 1000 – people I come across are supporting Hamas now,” he said. “The position of people in the Gaza Strip is much more anti-Hamas than what Hamas believes, because they are the ones who have paid the real price.”

Hamas’s rhetoric, he added, has become “a joke” among Gazans. “Every statement by Hamas leaders turns into joke material here. Their insistence on doubling down makes us feel that our tears mean nothing to this movement. We are zero to them.”

When asked directly if the October 7 attack was a sin, Abdul-Nabi said: “Absolutely. Resistance should not be driven by emotions. It should not be impulsive or vengeful… Reckless resistance can lead us to disaster, and this is what happened on October 7.”

He accused Hamas of acting without clear political goals, resulting in catastrophic consequences for ordinary Palestinians. “They took this miscalculated step, which led to the destruction of our people. At the very least, you should make us feel that it has some regrets.”

“Apology is not enough. Hamas needs to bear the responsibility and pay for its sin… The price cannot be anything less than the disappearance of Hamas from the Palestinian scene. Hamas needs to declare that it is disbanding.”

He called the group’s leadership unfit for any role in the Palestinian cause: “People who fail need to step down. Hamas failed in resistance, failed in governance, failed in war, and failed in everything.”

Abdul-Nabi reserved particular criticism for Ghazi Hamad’s past comments that “even if they kill 10,000, 20,000, or 100,000 of us,” the fight would continue. “What is this? How can he be so cavalier when talking about people’s lives? Is he talking about a handful of dollars?”

The former PIJ official stressed that Palestinians have the right to hold their leaders accountable for exposing them to such danger. “It is inconceivable that a tragedy like this will pass, and we will not have the right to call to account the people who brought this tragedy upon us,” he said.

While he acknowledged that political realities might make such accountability difficult, Abdul-Nabi maintained that the “minimal requirement” is for Hamas to step aside. “At the very least, Hamas should leave us, because it has failed in leading the Palestinian cause, failed in leading the resistance, failed in governing [Gaza], failed in everything.”

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