The morning after its victory in the Gaza Strip, Hamas was surprised to find fleas in its bed. Only six months ago it was still collaborating with the Army of Islam, the "institutional" name taken on by the bandit Doghmush clan.

Hamas used the Doghmush gunmen as contract killers against Fatah (in the murder of Mousa Arafat), for the launching of Qassam rockets against Israel while declaring it was adhering to a cease-fire and, of course, for the abduction of Gilad Shalit.

The leader of the Army of Islam, Mumtaz Doghmush, used to spend time with the heads of the Hamas military wing, Ahmed al-Ja'abari, Ahmed al A'ndur and others.

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One of their bonding experiences occured when the vehicle the three were riding in was attacked by members of the Doghmush clan who were affiliated with Fatah, and did not know that Mumtaz was a passenger.

And that was the point at which the blood feud between the Army of Islam and Hamas began.

Suddenly, the Doghmush clan in Hamas descriptions became an obstacle to public order, "collaborators with Fatah." However, the well-armed clan knew full well that so long as Hamas and Fatah were at each other's throats for control of the Strip, they could benefit from the chaos in the streets.

No one tried to confront them, or seek the release of kidnapped BBC
reporter Alan Johnston. On the contrary: Each one of the groups needed the clan's services and hoped to get its support in the war against the rival organization.

The newly released Johnston told a press conference at the British consulate in Jerusalem that his guards became very nervous after Hamas took over the Strip. They had a good reason for this. The fighting between the organizations had come to an end, and the Army of Islam could not continue operating under the cover of the chaotic conditions.

Hamas needed proof for the international community that its intentions are serious about restoring calm to the Strip. Yesterday, Hamas delivered the proof.

Johnston himself said that Hamas intends to restore law and order, but he too knows that it is a place with rules of its own.

Referring to his stay there, he said he'd had "enough already."

Hamas managed to gain the release of the BBC reporter though negotiations Gaza-style. A correct combination of stick, carrot and ladder. The stick: the gunmen of the Executive Force, which Hamas deployed around the Doghmush clan's compound and used to threaten an assault.

The carrot: guarantees that the clan will not be harmed after Johnston's release, and that it will be allowed to keep some weapons. And the ladder that enabled Mumtaz Doghmush, a devout Muslim, to climb down from the tree on which he found himself: the religious figure who acted as the
mediator between Hamas and the Army of Islam allegedly issued a fatwa (a religious decree) demanding that Doghmush release the foreign journalist.

Yesterday's release grants Hamas a small push forward in the international arena. The group proved to the world that it can be relied upon. It promised to gain Johnston's release and did so.

Hamas said it would take action against the chaos, the gunmen, the drugs, and it has had impressive success. The Palestinian public sees Hamas' action against the clan, which has come to reflect every negative and harmful trend in the Gaza Strip, as a positive development.

Meanwhile, Fatah found itself in a real crisis on the day that Palestinian media was supposed to deal mostly with the payment of salaries to all civil servants following the flow of funds from abroad to Mahmoud Abbas' coffers. Instead, the media focused on Johnston's release.

The Gaza Strip is becoming increasingly calm. Still, the calm stems from the scare tactics and the force utilized by Hamas, and for some Gaza residents, the quiet reminds them of the calm of a cemetery.