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Gaza City: Clashes between Hamas gunmen and members of Fatah security forces erupted again in the Gaza Strip yesterday, wounding 10 people and underscoring the difficulties facing a law enforcement crackdown.
In the worst factional violence in seven weeks, gunfights broke out in Gaza City and in the Jabaliya refugee camp, just one day after the mainstream security forces deployed in the initial phase of a flagship security operation.
Among the 10 wounded were members of the Fatah-dominated security services, including one critically injured, a fighter from Hamas's military wing, a woman and another civilian, Palestinian security and medical sources said.
Abdullah-Abbas talks
Security officials said the trouble began when Hamas gunmen ambushed a national security checkpoint not far from the luxury beachfront Al Deira Hotel in western Gaza City, leaving one officer critically wounded. But a Hamas spokesman denied that its Ezz Al Deen Al Qassam Brigades was responsible and instead blamed security officers for sparking the unrest by detaining a Hamas fighter going home and confiscating his Kalashnikov.
Ayman Taha said security forces then opened fire on Ezz Al Deen Al Qassam gunmen called to investigate and who subsequently returned fire. In another version of events from national security, Qassam fighters then took up position around 18 of its officers and confiscated their weapons before eventually allowing them to go.
Meanwhile, Jordan's King Abdullah II plans to meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah tomorrow in a rare visit to the Palestinian territories aimed at boosting efforts to relaunch peace talks, a spokesman said.
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