 EL ARISH, Egypt - Ninety-seven Palestinians, most of them Fatah fighters fleeing the advance of their Hamas rivals, sailed into the Egyptian port of El Arish on Friday aboard a fishing boat, Egyptian police said. The boat contained members of the Preventive Security force, the civilian police force, the border guard, the Fatah-run intelligence service and the Al Aqsa MartyrsÂ’ Brigade, which is also affiliated with Fatah. Thirteen had been wounded in the fighting.
| Ran away to fight another day, did they? |
They arrived in El Arish, about out of shooting range 50 km southwest of the Gaza border, around dawn, bringing 57 automatic rifles and 20 RPG launchers. Egyptian police handed the men to the armed forces, who took them to a military base.
"Hokay, listen up, we're putting you up in the BOQ tonight!"
[ groan ] |
Overnight about 20 Palestinian civilians also managed to enter Egypt through the main Rafah crossing point, which has been officially closed all this week because of the fighting in Gaza between Fatah and Hamas forces. On Thursday evening 99 Palestinian border guards entered Egypt at the same point, abandoning their positions in Gaza.
| Rats leaving a sinking ship ... |
Hamas took control of the Gaza Strip on Thursday and has not recognised ineffectual Palestinian President Mahmoud AbbasÂ’s decree removing Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh from the premiership.
Hamas later agreed to let the Fatah men safely back into Gaza provided they leave their weapons behind in Egypt, and 36 of them with a death wish took advantage of the offer on Friday, an Egyptian security official said.
The closure of the Rafah crossing point has left some 3,000 Palestinian travellers stranded in the El Arish area, most of them anxious to go home and make contact with their families. The Egyptian authorities are not allowing them close to the border until it reopens for fear that Palestinian gunmen from Gaza might make holes in the border wall and let people in or out without restrictions, as they did in July last year.
| Beause Hamas is all about law and order, you know. |
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