Israel Matzav

'Palestinian' Civil War Watch - 32 wounded in Ramallah

The 'Palestinian' Civil War seems to be starting in earnest.

At least 32 people were wounded today when Hamas and Fatah gunmen terrorists opened fire on each other in Ramallah, and many others were wounded when the same thing happened in Gaza. All of this was part of the celebration of the 19th anniversary of the founding of Hamas and comes just hours after an assassination attempt against 'moderate' 'Palestinian Prime Minister' Ismail Haniyeh. I cannot think of a better way for them to celebrate.

Despite the fighting, 60,000 people crammed into a Gaza City Stadium this afternoon (I'll bet you didn't know the 'Palestinians' had a stadium that big) and Haniyeh is scheduled to address the crowd.

The fighting Friday in Ramallah began when Hamas supporters marched toward the center of town, where the Fatah-allied 'police' were deployed in advance.

In Gaza City, masked Hamas terrorists waged battle with Fatah-allied 'police' near a security post in the middle of the city.

YNet puts the number of wounded at twenty - sixteen in Ramallah and four in Gaza - but says that two of the wounded are in critical condition.

YNet also reports that according to 'Fatah officials,' several Hamas gunmen have barricaded themselves in the Nazer mosque in the city of Ramallah and are firing at Fatah and Palestinian security forces inside the mosque compound. YNet also reports that the PA 'security forces' are essentially acting as a separate faction from Fatah and Hamas:

Witnesses added that PA security forces have begun covering their faces with masks as they try to overpower protestors and gunmen from both factions, mostly against Hamas.

...

In Ramallah reports say that the Palestinian government has begun training a special security force in the West Bank which will answer directly to the government, similar to the one formed in Gaza which operates under the direct command of the minister of the interior.

But to which government? Fatah's or Hamas'?

Witnesses told Ynet that some of the wounded are bystanders and protestors who were beaten by Palestinian security forces seeking to clear the streets, primarily from the center of town which was declared a closed military zone.

Haaretz reports that the shooting in Gaza took place just one block from the home of Muhammed Dahlan, whom Hamas accuses of orchestrating the attack on Haniyeh last night. The Jerusalem Post gives this account of the accusations against Dahlan:

Hamas spokesman in Gaza, Ismail Reduan said that Dahlan had planned the attempted hit as he led the group of Presidential Guard members who raked the convoy with gunfire.

During a press conference in Gaza, Reduan said that Dahlan was leading incitement against Hamas in order to enflame the Palestinian streets and cause a civil war.

He called on Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas to withdraw his Presidential Guard and Fatah's Force 17 from the Rafah Crossing and the streets of Gaza.

Dahlan denied the accusation and said that those to blame for the attack were the gunmen who stormed the Rafah Crossing. He claimed that Hamas was trying to cover up this week's killing of three children of Fatah members.

Earlier Friday morning, senior Hamas officials vowed that the Hamas-led PA government and the movement's armed faction would avenge the previous night's assassination attempt.

Hamas official Jamal Nasser said, "We know who shot at the prime minister's convoy and killed his bodyguard. Sooner or later we will settle our scores with them."

Nasser said that Dahlan and other Fatah officials were responsible for incitement and for the murder that capped a turbulent day of intense factional fighting between the Hamas and Fatah.

Other Hamas officials blamed the Palestinian Presidential Guard for the incident.

Haaretz has more on Reduan's 'press conference':

Haniyeh has threatened to "deal with" shots fired at his convoy, but did not provide further details. Angry Hamas officials on Friday pointed the finger at Dahlan - who denied the accusation, according to Israel Radio.

Ismail Radwan, a Hamas spokesman, told a news conference that Dahlan "planned and organized the [attempted] assassination of Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh."

"The dirty hands which assassinated and wounded the body guards of the prime minister and attacked the prime minister's convoy will not escape punishment," said Radwan. He offered no evidence of Dahlan's involvement.

Fatah dismissed the accusations against Dahlan.

"These accusations are not true, as long as no investigation to find out has been conducted," Tawfik Abu Khousa, a Fatah spokesman, said, calling for an official investigations. [He's calling for WHAT? WHO is going to 'investigate' this? CiJ] "These accusations are posing a grave threat to Palestinian unity." [BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH CiJ]

The weekend is off to an explosive start in Ramallah and Gaza. This is likely to continue and get worse with Haniyeh's speech in the stadium this afternoon, and 'moderate' 'Palestinian President' Mahmoud Abbas Abu Mazen expected to address his 'people' tomorrow and 'dissolve' the 'government' and call for new 'elections.' The fact that Ramallah - which is supposedly less violent and less fanatically Islamic - is becoming as violent as Gaza speaks volumes about where this is heading.

But hey - just give these people a state reichlet, and all of the world's problems will be solved. Just ask James Baker and Lee Hamilton.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 2:27 PM