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Factionsin Gaza clash over killings

A day after three boys are killed, Hamas gunmen open fire during marches by Fatah supporters.

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published December 13, 2006

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Demonstrations erupted throughout the West Bank and Gaza Strip on Tuesday in a mass outpouring of grief and fury a day after the killing of an intelligence officer's three young sons.

Students stayed home from school, newspapers published angry editorials and mothers outside the president's office demanded protection for their children.

As tensions rose, Hamas gunmen opened fire on a group of Fatah demonstrators who blamed the militant Islamic group for the slayings, wounding four people. Hamas gunmen also fired into the air at a second demonstration by Fatah supporters.

Monday's shooting of the three children raised fears of renewed bloodshed between moderate President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah Party and Hamas, who have been locked in a power struggle since Hamas won parliamentary elections in January. More than 40 people have died in fighting since Hamas took power in March.

The killing of the three young boys struck Gazans as a dangerous new stage. "This is something we have never experienced here," said Mayson Muzien, 27, at a protest in Gaza City. "We are asking ourselves: Are we close to civil war?"

The dead boys' father, Baha Balousheh, an intelligence officer and Fatah loyalist, helped lead a crackdown on Hamas a decade ago. Balousheh, who was not in the car, escaped two previous Hamas assassination attempts.

Hamas denied involvement in the boys' deaths and denounced the killings.

[Last modified December 13, 2006, 01:31:21]