Palestinians cant keep it together
miller8966
Posts: 1,450
tisk tisk boys...tisk tisk.
Hamas gunmen fired on demonstrators from the rival Fatah movement on Tuesday, wounding four people and intensifying fears of a new wave of Palestinian infighting following the deaths of three children in a drive-by shooting, officials said.
The demonstration was organized to protest the deaths of the children, whose car was riddled with bullets as they were driven to school Monday morning. Fatah officials have accused Hamas of being behind the shooting. The children's father is an intelligence officer who is considered an enemy of Hamas.
Saleh Hammad, a local Fatah leader, said the demonstration was peaceful, though he acknowledged that some children had provoked the Hamas militiamen by throwing rocks at them.
"Even if one or a few children lost their temper and stoned the members of the unit, this is not a reason to be fired at," he said.
Islami Shawan, a spokesman for the Hamas security unit in the area, denied his men had fired on protesters.
"Our personnel didn't fire at any demonstrations in Khan Younis. Our personnel were attacked by shooting and stones," Shawan said.
Hospital officials confirmed four people were wounded. The demonstration quickly dispersed, and there were no further signs of fighting.
The factional violence was the first since Monday's shooting, which increased fears of an explosion of violence between Fatah and Hamas.
Gaza has been plagued by escalating lawlessness and sporadic street battles between the factions since Hamas defeated Fatah in January parliamentary elections. The tensions increased over the weekend, after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas threatened to call new elections.
On Tuesday, a top aide to Abbas said the president will announce his intention to hold an early vote in a major speech on Saturday. But Abbas is not expected to announce a date for the election, giving negotiators more time to reach a deal with Hamas.
Abbas has been trying to form a coalition with Hamas in hopes of ending international sanctions against the current Hamas-led government. Western donors cut off hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to the government after Hamas took power, demanding the Islamic group renounce violence and recognize Israel's right to exist.
Hamas, which is committed to Israel's destruction, has rejected the international conditions. The sanctions have caused widespread hardship throughout the West Bank and Gaza.
Hamas gunmen fired on demonstrators from the rival Fatah movement on Tuesday, wounding four people and intensifying fears of a new wave of Palestinian infighting following the deaths of three children in a drive-by shooting, officials said.
The demonstration was organized to protest the deaths of the children, whose car was riddled with bullets as they were driven to school Monday morning. Fatah officials have accused Hamas of being behind the shooting. The children's father is an intelligence officer who is considered an enemy of Hamas.
Saleh Hammad, a local Fatah leader, said the demonstration was peaceful, though he acknowledged that some children had provoked the Hamas militiamen by throwing rocks at them.
"Even if one or a few children lost their temper and stoned the members of the unit, this is not a reason to be fired at," he said.
Islami Shawan, a spokesman for the Hamas security unit in the area, denied his men had fired on protesters.
"Our personnel didn't fire at any demonstrations in Khan Younis. Our personnel were attacked by shooting and stones," Shawan said.
Hospital officials confirmed four people were wounded. The demonstration quickly dispersed, and there were no further signs of fighting.
The factional violence was the first since Monday's shooting, which increased fears of an explosion of violence between Fatah and Hamas.
Gaza has been plagued by escalating lawlessness and sporadic street battles between the factions since Hamas defeated Fatah in January parliamentary elections. The tensions increased over the weekend, after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas threatened to call new elections.
On Tuesday, a top aide to Abbas said the president will announce his intention to hold an early vote in a major speech on Saturday. But Abbas is not expected to announce a date for the election, giving negotiators more time to reach a deal with Hamas.
Abbas has been trying to form a coalition with Hamas in hopes of ending international sanctions against the current Hamas-led government. Western donors cut off hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to the government after Hamas took power, demanding the Islamic group renounce violence and recognize Israel's right to exist.
Hamas, which is committed to Israel's destruction, has rejected the international conditions. The sanctions have caused widespread hardship throughout the West Bank and Gaza.
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