Last update - 00:00 21/10/2006
Masked gunmen kill Fatah man in Palestinian infighting in Gaza
By Avi Issacharoff, Haaretz Correspondent, and News Agencies
A protest by unpaid Palestinian security personnel erupted into an armed battle with members of Hamas' private militia, killing one Fatah activist and wounding three other people in a new round of political violence, witnesses and hospital officials said Sunday.
The fighting occurred near the Bureij and Nusseirat refugee camps in central Gaza after the security personnel began demonstrating to demand salaries on the eve of a major Muslim holiday. Battered by international sanctions, the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority has been largely unable to pay salaries to government workers since taking office in March.
Hamas militia members tried to quell the protest by the security men, who
support the rival Fatah movement, witnesses said. A Hamas member was stabbed and moderately wounded, sparking several hours of gunbattles.
After a brief lull, the fighting resumed early Sunday, and Mohammed Shahadeh, a well-known Fatah activist, was fatally shot outside his home, hospital officials said. Three other people, including one bystander, were wounded. The fighting was continuing throughout the night, with gunmen from the rival sides posted on rooftops.
Tensions have been high since Hamas defeated the long-ruling Fatah in parliamentary elections this year. The tensions have spilled over into violence in recent weeks, killing nearly 20 people in Palestinian internal violence.
PA taps retired security man to curb Hamas power in West Bank
Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday brought Ismail Jaber, formerly a top security commander, out of retirement to lead security forces in the West Bank.
Abbas hopes Jaber will help him curb Hamas' plans of bolstering its militia in the West Bank, an official close to the Palestinian leader said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the issue with the media.
Jaber has been accused of corruption, but is respected by thousands of gunmen loyal to Abbas' Fatah movement and holds sway over key West Bank commanders.
Abbas has been locked in a power struggle with Hamas since the Islamic group trounced his Fatah movement in parliamentary elections early this year.
Control over Palestinian security forces has been a key aspect of the dispute. With most of the forces loyal to Abbas, Hamas formed its own militia of 6,000 men and deployed it throughout the Gaza Strip, a move that has sometimes led to violent clashes between the sides.
Jaber's appointment came a day after Palestinian Foreign Minister Mahmoud Zahar, a top Hamas leader, said the Islamic group would strengthen its militia, known as the "Executive Force," in Fatah's West Bank stronghold. A Hamas official said they planned to recruit about 1,500 members there.
Under Abbas' new plan, Jaber will take command of all West Bank security forces, except for three branches that fall under control of the Hamas-run Interior Ministry.
Adding to Fatah's concerns, Hamas officials said Iran gave a promise to Interior Minister Said Siyam, who visited Tehran last week, to help train their security forces.
Jaber's appointment marks a turnaround for Abbas. In April 2005, Abbas forced Jaber and other senior officials into retirement as part of his efforts to root out corruption in the security forces. Jaber was suspected of putting thousands of fictitious names on his payrolls and pocketing the money.
However, Jaber has years of experience in top security roles and is seen as one of the few people who can unify the the pro-Fatah forces in the West Bank, which have been riven by infighting and rivalries.
Jaber, who is in his 60s, was a top commander for the Palestine Liberation Organization in Lebanon during the 1980s, and later followed Yasser Arafat to the West Bank after the interim peace deals with Israel in the early 1990s. He served as Arafat's national security advisor and police chief in the West Bank.
Jaber also has influence over parts of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, a
violent but decentralized group of gunmen loosely linked to Fatah.
Haniyeh aide: Shalit deal to include Hamas activists
A senior political adviser to Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas, Ahmed Yousef, said Saturday that Israel has agreed to release Palestinian prisoners, including senior Hamas activists, as part of an agreement to secure the release of kidnapped Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit.
He said the move is a significant step towards the resolution of the crisis sparked when Hamas-linked militants from Gaza abducted the soldier and killed two others in a cross-border raid on an IDF base inside Israel.
Yousef also said that after the upcoming Id al-Fitr holiday, which begins early next week and mark the end of Ramadan, Qatar will present an updated version of its initiative to broker a cease-fire between Fatah and Hamas.
There have been ongoing clashes in Gaza between Fatah and Hamas, since the latter trounced its rival in the January parliamentary elections.
According to Yousef, Hamas will accept the new initiative after a clause calling for the acceptance of a two-state solution is changed.
He added that Hamas and Fatah representatives may meet in Cairo over the coming weekend.
Al-Aqsa meets on Hamas threat
On Friday, Al-Aqsa leaders from four large refugee camps in the West Bank met in the city of Nablus to discuss the threat posed by Hamas.
"We decided there will be no Hamas force in the West Bank. We won't let them do what they did in Gaza," said one of the commanders, Nasser Abu Aziz. "Every Hamas policeman will be in our sights."
Hamas' power base in the West Bank is much smaller than in Gaza. The Fatah-dominated security forces, meanwhile, are largely in disarray, and it is unclear whether Jaber will have the funds or organizational abilities to impose order.
In other fighting, Palestinian security personnel clashed with members of the Hamas militia near the Nusseirat refugee camp. One Hamas member was stabbed and moderately wounded, hospital officials said.
Security men block roads leading to Abbas's house
Members of the Palestinian security forces fired in the air in Gaza City's main shopping district and burned tires near Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas' home Saturday, demanding payment of months overdue salaries on the eve of the Id al-Fitr holiday.
Plumes of smoke wafted from the area of Abbas' home in Gaza City. Protesters also stopped cars from entering the area. The shots in downtown Gaza, packed with pre-holiday shoppers, scattered panicked crowds.
The protesters said they are upset because only some members of the security forces have been paid ahead of the holiday.
The Hamas-led government has been struggling to pay salaries in the wake of a suspension of Western aid to the Palestinian Authority, after Hamas refused to renounce violence, recognize Israel and abide by previous interim peace agreements.
On Friday, gunmen opened fire at Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh's convoy as he left a Gaza mosque, destroying one vehicle in a burst of flames and raising tensions between Haniyeh's Hamas party and the rival Fatah party. There were no injuries in the shooting.