February 11, 2009 5:35 PM
- Text
New Palestinian Truce Already Bloodied
(CBS/AP)
Hamas gunmen killed two Palestinian policemen loyal to the rival Fatah movement early Wednesday, just hours after the sides agreed to a new cease-fire meant to end more than a week of factional fighting.
Fatah officials condemned the killing but said they remained committed to the truce. Gaza City remained calm at midmorning, in contrast to the pitched battles that raged in city streets a day earlier.
However, hundreds of people called for revenge at the policemen's funeral, raising the prospect of renewed fighting.
Fatah spokesman Tawfiq Abu Khoussa said the policeman, cousins in their early 20s, were killed as they were patrolling Gaza City when their vehicle was attacked. Six other people in the car were wounded, he said.
"They came under fire from an ambush of masked gunmen affiliated with Hamas," Abu Khoussa said.
He said Fatah considered the shooting a violation of the cease-fire, but would still honor the truce, announced just before midnight by President Mahmoud Abbas.
"Fatah is still committed to the agreement and to the announcement by President Abbas last night," he said.
About 300 people attended a funeral for the dead officers Wednesday. Many of the men were armed, shooting in the air and calling for revenge.
At one point, the funeral procession passed by the house of Foreign Minister Mahmoud Zahar, a top Hamas official, and mourners shouted epithets. Zahar apparently was not in the area at the time.
Hamas' Web site described the fatal shooting as "an intense gunbattle ... between Fatah and the (Hamas) executive unit." It said "the identity and the affiliation of the people killed is still unknown."
Security officials had initially thought the shooting was related to a long-running dispute between two local families and unrelated to the past week of political violence.
Forces loyal to both the ruling Hamas party, and Fatah were seen withdrawing from the streets of Gaza City Tuesday night as the new truce took hold.
"There will be a comprehensive cease-fire in Gaza to end all military demonstrations, all shooting will stop and random deployments (of armed men) will end," Abbas said Tuesday night when he announced the truce.
It was the second cease-fire the two sides had agreed to in less than a week. A similar agreement reached Sunday didn't last 12 hours before gunfire shattered the hopes and nerves of violence-weary Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Fatah officials condemned the killing but said they remained committed to the truce. Gaza City remained calm at midmorning, in contrast to the pitched battles that raged in city streets a day earlier.
However, hundreds of people called for revenge at the policemen's funeral, raising the prospect of renewed fighting.
Fatah spokesman Tawfiq Abu Khoussa said the policeman, cousins in their early 20s, were killed as they were patrolling Gaza City when their vehicle was attacked. Six other people in the car were wounded, he said.
"They came under fire from an ambush of masked gunmen affiliated with Hamas," Abu Khoussa said.
He said Fatah considered the shooting a violation of the cease-fire, but would still honor the truce, announced just before midnight by President Mahmoud Abbas.
"Fatah is still committed to the agreement and to the announcement by President Abbas last night," he said.
About 300 people attended a funeral for the dead officers Wednesday. Many of the men were armed, shooting in the air and calling for revenge.
At one point, the funeral procession passed by the house of Foreign Minister Mahmoud Zahar, a top Hamas official, and mourners shouted epithets. Zahar apparently was not in the area at the time.
Hamas' Web site described the fatal shooting as "an intense gunbattle ... between Fatah and the (Hamas) executive unit." It said "the identity and the affiliation of the people killed is still unknown."
Security officials had initially thought the shooting was related to a long-running dispute between two local families and unrelated to the past week of political violence.
Forces loyal to both the ruling Hamas party, and Fatah were seen withdrawing from the streets of Gaza City Tuesday night as the new truce took hold.
"There will be a comprehensive cease-fire in Gaza to end all military demonstrations, all shooting will stop and random deployments (of armed men) will end," Abbas said Tuesday night when he announced the truce.
It was the second cease-fire the two sides had agreed to in less than a week. A similar agreement reached Sunday didn't last 12 hours before gunfire shattered the hopes and nerves of violence-weary Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
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Scott Conroy Scott Conroy is a National Political Reporter for RealClearPolitics and a contributor for CBS News.
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