Israel Matzav

'Palestinian' civil war coming to Judea and Samaria

There was a large brawl today between supporters of Hamas and Fatah at an-Najah University near Shchem (Nablus). The injury reports vary - the Jerusalem Post is reporting three injured, while YNet is reporting ten injured - one critically and nine lightly. This is from the JPost account:

The clash began when Hamas supporters staged a sit-in on campus and raised their movement's green flags. Fatah activists demanded that the Hamas flags be removed, and a fistfight erupted.

At some point, dozens of Palestinian security officers broke into the university and opened fire, the witnesses said. They were joined by about two dozen gunmen in civilian dress.

One of the students, 20-year-old Lina Hajaj, said most of those around her were exchanging blows. "I saw a large number of students throwing chairs and waste baskets at each other," she said.

"Then I heard extensive shooting in the university. It was so scary. Then I saw a student fall on the ground with blood coming out of his head," she added.

Ayman al-Masri, a journalism teacher at the university, said he saw several dozen armed men, some of them members of the security forces, on campus. He said the armed men grabbed some of the Hamas supporters and detained them.

University President Rami Hamdallah said he held Hamas responsible for the fighting. He said that since the Hamas takeover of Gaza, An Najah has not permitted political activity of students on campus, and that Hamas violated the ban.

But according to YNet the shooters weren't University security officers. In fact, the account is quite different:

The clashes began after Hamas-affiliated students put up anti-Fatah fliers slamming the recent arrests of Hamas operatives in the city.

In response, dozens of Shabiba members – the Fatah youth movement on campus – started rioting.

University security personnel quickly arrived on the scene, firing warning shots in the air. At that time, dozens of al-Aqsa gunmen (Fatah's military wing) stormed the campus and opened fire on Hamas members.

Fatah members in Nablus told Ynet that the act was a clear provocation by Hamas, who had been warned by the university to stop distributing inciteful materials.

Following the altercation, the university suspended all classes and asked the students to leave the grounds and return to their homes.

Hamas politburo chief Khaled Mashaal had recently warned Fatah against underestimating Hamas' strength in the West Bank.

And for those who have forgotten, here are two pictures of an-Najah in 'happier' times:


But just give them a state reichlet and everything will be fine.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 6:10 PM