Region | Palestinian Territories
Nine killed, 95 hurt in Hamas-Fatah violence in Gaza
Three Hamas policemen and six pro-Fatah gunmen were killed in the Gaza Strip on Saturday in the deadliest confrontation between the rival factions since Hamas seized control of the coastal territory a year ago.
- Agencies
- Published: 09:31 August 2, 2008
- Hamas fighters take part in a training session in Gaza City. Hamas security forces fanned out across a tense Gaza Strip on Saturday after a deadly car bombing that killed five Hamas fighters a week ago.
- Image Credit: AP
Gaza: Three Hamas policemen and six pro-Fatah gunmen were killed in the Gaza Strip on Saturday in the deadliest confrontation between the rival factions since Hamas seized control of the coastal territory a year ago.
The fighting erupted when Hamas gunmen surrounded the Shejaia suburb in Gaza City to arrest 11 suspects, who the Islamist group believes were behind bombings that killed five Hamas gunmen and a girl last Friday.
Members of the Helles clan, affiliated with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah faction, surrendered to Hamas after clashes that also wounded five Hamas policemen and 90 other people, including 16 children, a Hamas official said.
Clan leader Ahmad Helles and 179 of his men escaped to the border with Israel. An Israeli army spokesman said soldiers allowed all 180 men to cross the border and some were evacuated to Israeli hospitals for treatment.
Hamas Interior Minister Saeed Seyam, speaking in Gaza City, said police arrested dozens of gunmen, including four of the 11 men Hamas believes were behind the bombings, and confiscated large quantities of arms and explosives.
"We can confirm that Fatah are implicated in the bombings," Seyam said, accusing pro-Fatah cells of inciting violence against the Hamas government. Fatah denies the charges.
The official Palestinian news agency WAFA said Abbas had telephoned Ahmed Helles, a senior Fatah representative in the Gaza Strip, to express solidarity. Abbas called Hamas's campaign "unacceptable" and a blow to his call for national dialogue.
The violence could hamper Egyptian efforts to reconcile Fatah with Hamas. Tension between the two spiked last year after Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip from pro-Abbas forces.
Ehab Al Ghsain, a spokesman for Hamas's Interior Ministry, said: "The Helles family has become a military force and its members have been attacking, abducting and even killing people. We must put an end to their attacks on innocent citizens."
The recent violence could hamper Egyptian efforts aimed at reconciling Abbas's Fatah movement with Hamas Islamists. Tension between the rival factions spiked last year when Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip after routing pro-Abbas forces.
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