Palestinian cease-fire dissolves; 4 dead - AP

[Eugene]

Palestinian cease-fire dissolves; 4 dead

By SARAH EL DEEB, Associated Press Writer

17 minutes ago

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Gunfights between Hamas and Fatah gunmen erupted across
the Gaza Strip on Thursday, killing four people, wounding several others and effectively
destroying a three-day truce that brought a brief period of quiet to the volatile area.

Hamas militants fired mortar shells near Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' residence
in Gaza City and nearby street battles sent residents fleeing in terror. Some left their
cars idling while they sought shelter.

Masked gunmen took up positions on rooftops, while others took cover in alleyways below.
Abbas was not in Gaza at the time.

The violence broke out in the central Gaza town of Bureij after Hamas militants hijacked
a convoy delivering supplies to the Fatah-allied security forces, security officials said.
Security reinforcements were seen flooding into the town.

-snip-

Full article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070201/ap_on_re_mi_ea/israel_palestinians

Related: Hamas ambushes Gaza convoy, four dead - Reuters

[pampango]

1. Just don't call it a "civil war"

Another day, more fighting and death; another truce.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6326265.stm

On a per capita basis the violence in Gaza is about the same as in Iraq. Iraq (26 million) is about 19 times bigger than Gaza (1.4 million). 20 dead in Gaza would translate to 380 dead in Iraq. It may be safer to live in Iraq now than in Gaza.

[Douglas Carpenter]

2. US seeks 86 million dollars in military aid to Fatah

link: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070112/pl_afp/mideastpalestinian

"WASHINGTON (AFP) - The administration of President George W. Bush has asked Congress to authorize 86 million dollars in military aid to boost security forces loyal to moderate Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas, a senior US official said".

snip:"Last month, Egypt, with Israel's consent, sent a large quantity of automatic weapons and ammunition to Abbas loyalist forces and Washington has been pressing the Jewish state to allow a Jordan-based Palestinian militia linked to Fatah deploy in the Gaza Strip, a Hamas stronghold.

Rice has been seeking ways to strengthen Abbas and his secular Fatah party in an increasingly violent power struggle with the radical Islamic movement Hamas."

link to full article:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070112/pl_afp/mideastpalestinian

.