To what extent can a non-state actor resembling a government be regulated by human rights principles? This study is the first detailed human rights analysis of Hamas conduct and governance in the Gaza Strip. Drawing on reports and resolutions from the United Nations and local and international human rights organizations, the author considers four years of uncontested Hamas control over the area and suggests a normative framework for evaluating Hamas conduct according to international human rights standards and degree of influence over the public sphere in the absence of more formally binding obligations.