Islams hær, gruppen som holder Alan Johnston, ledes av Dagmoush-klanen, en hensynsløs kriminell bande, som har fått sansen for jihad-ideologi. De har flere tusen mann under våpen og tenker mest på å forøke sin egen makt og kasse.
Når man leser at det eksisterer slike grupper i Gaza, må man spørre: hvor er journalistene? Hvorfor har ikke Sidsel Wold eller Sigurd Falkenberg Mikkelsen fortalt om dem før? Vi har sett referanser til Dagmoush siden Alan Johnston ble bortført, men at de er så mange og hensynsløse er nytt.
At en slik religiøs mafia ledes av en 28-åring gir visse perspektiver på utsiktene til fred. Særlig når den samme klanen er blitt bitre fiender av Hamas. Her er det vendettaen som gjelder.
The Dagmoush clan is an old ally of Yasser Arafat's secular Fatah Party. The family's power was built on arms smuggling, extortion and crime. With thousands of heavily armed members, their influence reaches deep inside Palestinian society. .. Mumtaz Dagmoush, the 28-year-old head of his family and leader of the Army of Islam, is notorious for his brutality, but his crimes were always understood as a way of build up his family's wealth and power:His clan has staged previous kidnappings, but their victims were often released quickly in exchange for money or weapons from the Palestinian Authority.
So when Mr Johnston went missing 80 days ago, Dagmoush quickly became a prime suspect.
Last December, Hamas gunmen killed two Dagmoush clan members. When Hamas refused to turn over the victims' killers, Dagmoush vowed revenge.
Mr Johnston's abduction was initially seen as a way of pressuring Hamas. There were rumours the clan had demanded $5 million, the transfer of weapons and a tract of land.
Man kan forstå at klaner driver "racket" der vanlig økonomi er fraværende. Men Hamas-regjeringens limbo-posisjon har skapt et vakuum, som fylles av Al Qaida-tanker. Unge med våpen vil ha "instant" resultater.
Palestinian observers say Islamist tone of his message reflects a wider trend of al-Qaeda affiliated groups gaining strength in Gaza. With the collapse of authority in Gaza and its financial isolation, fundamentalist elements appear to be taking root.In recent months, Islamist groups have attacked dozens of internet cafes, video shops and pharmacies which they claim, promote an "impure" Western lifestyle.
The Dagmoush family has apparently embraced al-Qaeda's ideology because it strikes a chord with some disenfranchised Palestinians who have grown increasingly frustrated with Western policies which they say have isolated their government, deprived them of wages and denied them decent lives.
A growing number of Palestinians are also disappointed with Hamas, the militant movement that swept to power last year on promises to rid government of corruption.
Dette passer jo som hånd i hanske med Gunnar Heinsohns teorier om 'ungdomspukler', i en mindre skala. En hel skokk unge menn som ikke kan sluses inn i samfunnsnyttig virksomhet på grunn av et rigid politiskt, kulturelt og økonomisk system.