'Tied, dragged and beaten to death': Hamas kills Palestinian man for criticising militant group

The Palestinian militant group Hamas tortured a Palestinian man to death after he criticised the group publicly and participated in rare anti-Hamas protests in Gaza, his family said.

22-year-old Uday Rabie was taken last week by dozens of armed fighters with Hamas' military wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, in the Tal al-Hawa neighbourhood of Gaza City, his brother Hassan Rabie told CNN.

Rabie had altercations with members of the group around a month before his death and had expressed fears that militants would come for him, his brother said.

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Uday also participated with thousands of others in anti-Hamas and anti-war protests that took place last week, his brother said.

Hassan said that his brother also chanted "No to Hamas" during a rally in the al-Rimal neighborhood of Gaza City.

What happened with Uday?

A group of armed men, affiliated with the Al-Qassam Brigades kidnapped Uday last Friday, and then tortured him, Hassan said.

He was then taken off the street, days after he protested.

“They took him, they kept torturing him,” Hassan told CNN. “They then called me and said, come get your brother.”

Hassan continued that "his brother was still alive" when the group returned him. Rabie was only wearing underwear and the fighters had him “tied by the neck with a rope, and were dragging him, beating him,” Hassan said.

“They handed him over to me, and told me, in these words: This is the fate of everyone who disrespects Al-Qassam Brigades and speaks ill of them,” Hassan said.

He further said that he collected his injured brother and took him to a nearby hospital. According to footage shared on social media, Rabie was seen lying on a hospital bed, covered in large cuts and bruises that stretched along his arms, back and feet.

Later, Hassan confirmed the authenticity of the video, and said the man on the bed was indeed his brother.

After being taken to the hospital, Rabie died shortly, his brother said.

A photo shared with CNN showed Rabie after he died, his face heavily bruised, with parts of his hair and one eyebrow shaved.

Hassan said that the family is “sure” Rabie was killed by members of the Al-Qassam Brigades, adding that “we have half of their names.”

However, the Al-Qassam Brigades has not yet publicly commented on the accusations.

Rabie’s family published a statement on Facebook, saying that "a group claiming to be from Al-Qassam Brigades” kidnapped Rabie at 8:30 p.m. on Friday. After hours of searching for Rabie, the statement said, his family was told he was in the hands of the group, who said he needed to be “disciplined” for “cursing them.”

Rabie was “tortured in the most severe manner with all kinds of sharp and hard objects.” He suffered “internal bleeding,” as well as several injuries to the head, pelvis and back, his family said, according to the statement.

Rabie's family demanded retribution, adding that Hamas brought those who killed him to justice.

(With inputs from agencies)