Hamas and Fatah rival factions battle in Gaza, three killed

GAZA – Three gunmen were killed yesterday when fighting erupted in the Gaza Strip between Fatah forces backing Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas loyalists, in the most serious internal strife since Hamas came to power.

The street battles in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis broke out after Abbas and Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas failed to resolve security disputes in talks at the weekend. Abbas and Haniyeh, whose militant Islamist group won a Jan.25 parliamentary election, are embroiled in a power struggle over control of the security forces which has intensified Palestinian fears of a civil war between the feuding factions.The clashes began overnight when, according to Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri, Fatah security men “kidnapped” three members of Hamas’s armed wing, the Izz el-Deen al-Qassam brigades.Gunmen from the brigades then surrounded the area where the men were being held and captured four Fatah men, Abu Zuhri said.A Hamas gunman was shot dead in an initial round of fighting and two Fatah men were killed in a second clash, he added.At least 11 people, including a 16-year-old youth, were wounded.The fighting subsided after three hours as leaders from both groups attempted to negotiate an end to hostilities.Haniyeh, speaking to reporters, called for restraint.”I have issued direct and firm instructions to the Interior Ministry to take all necessary measures to end the bloodshed and tension, using all Palestinian security forces to ensure these events do not continue or spread to other areas,” he said.Local residents said the tension might spill over again when the funerals for the three dead are held later in the day.A spokesman for Fatah called for an end to the fighting and “a responsible dialogue to stop the bloodshed in Khan Younis and to prevent the clashes from spreading to other areas”.Fatah activists have bristled over the rise to power of Hamas over their mainstream faction which long-dominated Palestinian politics.Rivalries between Fatah and Hamas deepened after Abbas appointed a Fatah loyalist to a senior post in the Interior Ministry, which supervises the security forces, so that he could exert more influence over the Hamas-run ministry.Last month, 20 people were wounded in fighting between Hamas and Fatah supporters in Gaza after exiled Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal condemned Abbas’s veto of a new security force, formed by Hamas and headed by a top militant.- Nampa-ReutersAbbas and Haniyeh, whose militant Islamist group won a Jan.25 parliamentary election, are embroiled in a power struggle over control of the security forces which has intensified Palestinian fears of a civil war between the feuding factions.The clashes began overnight when, according to Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri, Fatah security men “kidnapped” three members of Hamas’s armed wing, the Izz el-Deen al-Qassam brigades.Gunmen from the brigades then surrounded the area where the men were being held and captured four Fatah men, Abu Zuhri said.A Hamas gunman was shot dead in an initial round of fighting and two Fatah men were killed in a second clash, he added.At least 11 people, including a 16-year-old youth, were wounded.The fighting subsided after three hours as leaders from both groups attempted to negotiate an end to hostilities.Haniyeh, speaking to reporters, called for restraint.”I have issued direct and firm instructions to the Interior Ministry to take all necessary measures to end the bloodshed and tension, using all Palestinian security forces to ensure these events do not continue or spread to other areas,” he said.Local residents said the tension might spill over again when the funerals for the three dead are held later in the day.A spokesman for Fatah called for an end to the fighting and “a responsible dialogue to stop the bloodshed in Khan Younis and to prevent the clashes from spreading to other areas”.Fatah activists have bristled over the rise to power of Hamas over their mainstream faction which long-dominated Palestinian politics.Rivalries between Fatah and Hamas deepened after Abbas appointed a Fatah loyalist to a senior post in the Interior Ministry, which supervises the security forces, so that he could exert more influence over the Hamas-run ministry.Last month, 20 people were wounded in fighting between Hamas and Fatah supporters in Gaza after exiled Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal condemned Abbas’s veto of a new security force, formed by Hamas and headed by a top militant.- Nampa-Reuters