Palestinian civil servants said they came under gunfire from a Hamas-led force as they tried to report for work on Thursday, which Hamas has decreed a day off.

Dozens of employees arrived at their offices in Gaza to find entrance doors chained and Hamas's Executive Force threatening to arrest them, witnesses said.

No one was hurt in the incident.

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"The (Executive Force) fired into the air first and then when employees did not (leave), they fired on the ground, near women employees," said Finance Ministry worker Mesleh al-Kilani.

"Yes, they fired," many of his colleagues shouted.

Guidelines for the working week by Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas's emergency government set Sunday to Thursday as working days with a Friday/Saturday weekend.

But the Hamas-led government, which Abbas dismissed after the Islamist movement seized Gaza in a civil war three weeks ago, has set a Saturday-Wednesday working week.

Hamas has rejected Abbas's dismissal of the unity government they formed last March, describing the establishment of an emergency cabinet as a coup.

Islam Shahwan, spokesman of the Executive Force, said: "Perhaps one or two shots were fired, but there were no orders at all (to start shooting).

"The orders of the government (the one Abbas dismissed) ... were to prevent employees from entering the ministry because today is an official day off."

Palestinian prime minister vows to crack down on gunmen
Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayad pledged on Thursday to crack down on militants in the West Bank but said success hinged on Israel's agreement to stop pursuing the gunmen.

In a Reuters interview, Fayad, head of the emergency government that PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas established last month after Hamas' takeover of the Gaza Strip, said the push for law and order would not target the Islamist group alone.

"We need to be very serious about this, regardless of who they may be, which party they may belong to. If they choose not to cooperate in this effort, they are a foe, the party is over," Fayad said.

"We just cannot be serious about building a state and at the same time accepting armed militias ... We have to bring matters under control. This may be our last chance."

But Fayad said Israel must pledge not to take advantage of a disarmament campaign by continuing to pursue militants - as it has vowed to do.

"Otherwise, what kind of credibility would your security effort continue to have? Not much, I would say. It would crumble," he said.

He said his government was holding talks with Israel on the issue and was awaiting a response.

"But we hope we won't wait too long because it's essential for us to deliver on the promise of providing law and order. That's a key priority of this government and we have to succeed. We just simply cannot fail."

PA forces clamp down on Hamas 'sleeper cells' in West Bank
In an effort to quash Hamas in the West Bank, Fatah security forces recently arrested dozens of members of the Islamic group in the area and confiscated a considerable amount of weapons, a senior Palestinian official told Haaretz Tuesday.

The Hamas detainees revealed during questioning that their organization had been establishing sleeper cells of the group's Executive Force in the West Bank, the official allied to Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas reported.

"They had an organized chain of command, weapons, they even trained in various places," he said. "We are currently working toward dismantling the Hamas infrastructure in the West Bank." He added that the West Bank security forces intend to continue battling the establishment of a Hamas network in the area.

The official said that the arrests were not coordinated with Israel, and that Israel had no knowledge of the extent of the militant Hamas presence in the West Bank.

The Palestinian security forces under Abbas' authority continued the Hamas arrests on Monday, detaining Hamas parliament member Ahmed Haj, the first Hamas lawmaker to be arrested since fighting broke out last month between Abbas' Fatah movement and Hamas. He was released two hours later.

Hamas on Monday arrested the spokesman of the militant group Army of Islam following an exchange of fire.