Yasser Abu Shabab, a Bedouin man in his 30s, holds sway in eastern Rafah, an area close to a key border crossing between Israel and Gaza.

"Our weapons are not from Israel - they are simple weapons that we collected from the local population." The Prime Minister’s Office and a security source on Thursday declined to refute claims made by Yisrael Beytenu chairman Avigdor Liberman that Israel is arming crime families and militias in Gaza to fight Hamas.

We have no ties to any state or political regime,” he said. “These accusations are attempts to damage our reputation and stir hostility between us and other countries”