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On-going violence in Gaza, now partly fueled by Al-Qaeda.
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| By Associated Press January 24, 2007 |
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Masked gunmen claiming to be from al-Qaida swarmed into a Gaza beach resort Tuesday and blew up a reception hall in an attack aimed at intimidating a Gaza strongman allied with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, a witness said.
The assault threatened to spark a new wave of internal violence, casting a cloud over a new round of talks to form a Palestinian unity government after the failure of a summit meeting in Damascus between Abbas and the head of the Islamic Hamas.
About 40 gunmen stormed into the resort, a favorite for Israeli visitors before Palestinian-Israeli violence erupted in 2000. A guard said the attackers hooked boxes of explosives and tanks of fuel to a battery and blew up the main hall, collapsing a huge glass ceiling and knocking down a wall. Other gunmen threw grenades at seaside cabins, destroying furniture and televisions.
No one was hurt because the resort was empty, except for a few guards.
Resort manager Yousef Sari said the gunmen had a warning for Fatah strongman Mohammed Dahlan, an Abbas confidant. Dahlan has been rumored to own the resort but has denied any commercial connection to the site.
"Tell Dahlan al-Qaida has arrived in Gaza and his property and assets are targets," Sari quoted the attackers as saying.
Despite sporadic reports, al-Qaida is not thought to have a presence in Gaza. Abbas has said al-Qaida is operating in Gaza, and al-Qaida has issued statements claiming responsibility for several attacks on Palestinian officials. However, security officials say the claims are usually made by local militants or crime gangs trying to divert attention.
Palestinian security officials said they were investigating the gunmen's claim that they belonged to the international terror group. Another possibility was a gang-style business dispute.
Dahlan, a stylish dresser who is one of the most feared and powerful figures in Gaza, served in senior security positions when Abbas' Fatah was in power and cracked down hard on Hamas. He maintains control over armed forces in Gaza even though Fatah was ousted by Hamas in elections a year ago.
Dahlan is said to have played a behind the scenes role in months of fighting between armed forces of Fatah and Hamas that has killed at least 62 people.
On Tuesday Gaza journalists went on strike to protest another act of violence -- the bombing of the Gaza City office of the Arabic satellite TV channel al-Arabiya late Monday. The channel has been in a dispute with Hamas over news coverage. The Hamas-led government and Abbas both condemned the attack.
In the West Bank city of Nablus, Palestinian gunmen briefly kidnapped a man who identified himself as a French diplomat and his two bodyguards before releasing them unharmed.
The Fatah-Hamas violence has ebbed and flowed alongside negotiations over a unity government. Another round of talks was scheduled for later Tuesday in Gaza.
Over the weekend, Abbas went to Damascus for a much-anticipated meeting with the top leader of Hamas, Khaled Mashaal, but they were unable to overcome basic disagreements.
The United States, Europe and Israel cut off funding to the Palestinian government after Hamas took power in March, listing Hamas as a terror group and demanding that the new government recognize Israel, renounce violence and accept previous peace accords.
Abbas, whose Fatah long ago accepted those points, has been trying to persuade Hamas to accept a formula to get Fatah back into government while allowing vital foreign aid to be resumed. Without the funds, the Palestinian government has been bankrupted, causing widespread hardship in the West Bank and Gaza.
Abbas has threatened to order new elections if a deal is not reached soon, but has set no firm deadline. Hamas says it would boycott the voting, charging Abbas with trying to overthrow a democratically elected government. Abbas was elected separately two years ago. |
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