At least four people have been killed in a surge of violent clashes between rival factions in Gaza. A leader of the Fatah-linked al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, Baha Abu Jarab, was ambushed and shot dead, along with his driver, in northern Beit Lahiya. Fatah blamed rival group Hamas, which denied the claim. At least two people died in gunfights after those killings. The attacks come days after the groups launched a major security operation to crack down on violence in Gaza. | Seems to be working as well as anything in Gaza |
| I love the smell of popcorn in the morning |
Back in Gaza City, masked gunmen abducted a Hamas religious scholar as he left a mosque, his family and Hamas officials said. Ali Sharif, a teacher at the Islamic University in his 70s, was taken outside his home in Sabra neighbourhood. The kidnappers opened fire when neighbours tried to rescue him, his daughter told Associated Press news agency.
It is the worst outbreak of fighting since a February ceasefire between the rival factions, who established a unity government in March.
Palestinian Information Minister Mustafa Barghouti called for the rival factions to control their armed forces. "Not only the future of the government, but the future of all the Palestinian people will be endangered if these bloody acts continue," he said.
| Pass the butter |
Up to 400 people have died in clashes between Palestinian factions since the Islamist Hamas won last year's parliamentary elections. Since the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza in 2005, the strip has seen a wave of infighting, armed robberies, deadly family feuds and kidnappings.