Hamas asserts power in Gaza
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Jerusalem Post ^ | 9/16/5 | JPOST STAFF AND AP
On Friday afternoon, thousands of masked Hamas gunmen marched in formation at a large victory rally in this empty Jewish settlement Friday, the Islamic terror organization's latest show of strength since Israel completed its withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.
Channel Two news reported Friday night that the islamist terror organization had also taken up military-like positions along the Philadelphi Route, as well as a rumor that the greenhouses still standing for Palestinian use were preserved because Hamas had warned civilians not to harm the valuable asset.
The border issue and visible Hamas presence pose a serious challenge to Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, who is trying to assert control in Gaza. With elections approaching in January, Hamas and Abbas' Fatah faction are locked in an increasingly bitter power struggle and each is trying to use the pullout for political gain. Abbas, under heavy international pressure to crack down on terror, has urged Hamas to disarm. Hamas has rejected the calls, and one commander Friday said his group instead plans to build up its arsenal.
"These weapons will only increase in strength. We will increase our production capacity and the purchase of weapons," said Fathi Hamad, a Hamas commander in the northern Gaza town of Beit Lahiya.
Several thousand Hamas masked gunmen walked in formation through the ruins of Neve Dekalim, which weeks ago was the largest Israeli settlement in Gaza. Gunmen fired machine guns into the air, and Hamas vehicles displaying homemade Qassam rockets and grenade launchers on their roofs drove over an Israeli flag.
Some 10,000 people, many of them waving green Hamas flags or wearing green baseball caps, cheered on the militants, and the group's senior leadership watched the procession from a makeshift stage. A delegation from Egypt's Muslim brotherhood, a banned opposition group, joined the celebration.
Earlier Friday, hundreds of masked Hamas gunmen in military-style fatigues paraded through the abandoned settlement of Netzarim.
A Hamas member, who identified himself as Abu Masab Hamad, warned the Palestinian Authority not to bow to Israeli and international demands to disarm the group. "If it (the Palestinian Authority) gives in we will oppose it. We shall cling to our arms like we cling to our religion."
Abbas, meanwhile, was headed to the southern border town of Rafah, where Palestinians have freely crossed into Egypt all week for shopping sprees and family reunions.
Palestinian Interior Ministry spokesman Tawfiq Abu Khoussa said the flow had slowed to a trickle by Friday morning. He said police had seized 500 kilos of narcotics - mostly marijuana - and an unspecified number of weapons.
But late Friday afternoon, thousands of Palestinians broke through Egyptian and Palestinian security lines for a second straight day.
The surge started when Palestinians pelted their own security forces with stones at the Saladin gate, the main informal crossing. When Palestinian security officials gave way, the crowd pushed through the iron gateway and tackled the Egyptian police. Overwhelmed policemen unsuccessfully tried to beat the crowd back with sticks. |
