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Muzzie Gras Celebrations Continue in Gaza
Nine Palestinians were killed in Gaza clashes between Fatah and Hamas on Wednesday. Of those killed seven were Fatah insurgents who died in a gun battle with Hamas gunmen in the home of senior Fatah spokesman Maher Miqdad, Israel Radio reported. According to Palestinian sources, Miqdad escaped the premises.
Hamas has prepared a hit list with the names of Fatah leaders it wishes to eliminate, Israel Radio reported Wednesday. The top name on the list is PA National Security Adviser Muhammad Dahlan, who is currently in Egypt. Like Dahlan, most of the personages on the list are not presently in Gaza.
| They'll let the minions fight it out. |
Five Palestinians were wounded in Gaza overnight Tuesday, two seriously, as fighting between Hamas and Fatah showed no sign of respite. Palestinian sources reported that Hamas members fired mortars and anti-tank missiles at Fatah security posts in Gaza City, in refugee camps in the central Gaza Strip and in Khan Yunis. The five casualties were apparently civilians.
| Sincde the MSM doesn't know the difference between 'civilian', 'hard boy', 'camp follower' and 'terrorist'. |
Fighting also spread to the West Bank, with gunbattles in Nablus, Israel Radio reported. On Tuesday, Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas accused Hamas of staging a "bloody coup" to try and take full control of the Gaza Strip. His allegations came as thousands of Hamas militiamen launched a full-scale attack on Fatah figures and institutions in most parts of the Gaza Strip. Hamas fighters captured the headquarters of the Fatah-backed security forces in the northern part of the Strip.
| But it's not a civil war, thank goodness. |
| It's... ummm... something else. |
Twenty-one people were killed in this battle, which involved hundreds of fighters from both sides.
| Someone has to work on marksmanship skills. |
| The EU's turned the aid pipeline back on. We expect to see some marksmanship lessons, by gum! |
At least 28 Palestinians were killed in Tuesday's clashes throughout the Strip, including some senior members of Hamas and Fatah. Sources in the Gaza Strip said most of the casualties were Fatah activists and members of the Palestinian security forces.
| 'Senior members'? New job opportunities for number threes, apply within. |
The death toll from two days of fighting reached 37.
The Fatah central committee, meeting in emergency session in Ramallah Tuesday night, decided to suspend participation in the national unity government until the fighting stopped. "The hospitals are full of bodies," said Ahraf Abu Baker, a nurse at Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. "We are running short of blood and we have appealed for donations. We have wounded people arriving every minute."
| You can partly solve the problem by moving the bodies to the morgue; that'll leave more room in the hospitals. |
PA officials here told The Jerusalem Post that the Hamas offensive was the biggest one by the group in the Gaza Strip thus far. "Hamas has declared war on Fatah and the Palestinian Authority," said one official. "The rules of the game have changed and we will have to act in accordance with the new threat."
| "We are witnessing the first signs of a cruel civil war." |
Another PA official expressed deep concern over Hamas's success in taking control of several Palestinian security installations. He revealed that Hamas managed to lay its hands on large amounts of weapons belonging to the Fatah-controlled security forces in many parts of the Gaza Strip. "They have seized thousands of rifles, large amounts of ammunition and dozens of vehicles, including armored jeeps," he said. "This is really bad news for us all."
Abbas told Fatah leaders during an emergency meeting in Ramallah that "political and security" leaders of Hamas were determined to take control of the Gaza Strip by force. "Hamas is mistaken if it thinks that it can take control of the Gaza Strip through violent means," he said. "We are witnessing the first signs of a cruel civil war."
Posted by: GolfBravoUSMC 2007-06-13 |
