PALESTINIAN CIVIL WAR UPDATE

Hamas Attacks Escalate in Gaza as Palestinians Fight for Power - Steven Erlanger and Isabel Kershner
Gunmen of rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah sharply escalated their fight for supremacy on Tuesday, with Hamas taking over much of the northern Gaza Strip in what is looking increasingly like a civil war. In one Hamas attack on a Fatah security headquarters in northern Gaza, at least 21 Palestinians were reported killed and another 60 wounded, said Moaweya Hassanein of the Palestinian Health Ministry. (New York Times)

See also Egyptian and Jordanian Intelligence Chiefs: "Al-Qaeda is Leading the Battles in Gaza" - Semadar Peri
According to the heads of Egyptian and Jordanian Intelligence, General Omar Sulayman and General Muhammad Dahbi, al-Qaeda caused the violation of the Mecca Agreement for a Palestinian unity government, the renewal of clashes between Hamas and Fatah, and the conversion of the strip into "Gazastan." Egyptian intelligence officers presented photographs of the warfare, arguing that "the type of fighting that is being waged now in Gaza is characteristic of the style of al-Qaeda Iraq." The intelligence chiefs expressed concern that the bloody clashes in Gaza will spill over to neighboring countries: Egypt, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia. (Yediot Ahronot-Hebrew, 13Jun07)

See also The Growing Al-Qaeda Presence in the Hamas-Controlled Gaza Strip - Lt. Col. (res.) Jonathan D. Halevi (JCPA)

Gaza Residents Under Fire
Ahmed, 27, from Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza says, "Here in the north things are calm. It's now a green bloc, all under Hamas control. Last night a Fatah leader was assassinated in Jabaliya....So people are thinking: 'That's it. He was the last one....It was obvious Hamas was targeting the Fatah leadership in the northern areas even though the man himself had good relations with everyone....People don't understand the Palestinian Authority - they are all paralyzed and there's no leadership. They can't even protect their own leaders." (BBC News)

See also Gaza Hospitals Turned into Battlefields - Sarah El Deeb
Hamas-affiliated security guards used the roof of the European hospital in Khan Yunis to launch an assault on a nearby Fatah position Tuesday. The hospital in Beit Hanoun shut down entirely after three people were shot dead inside on Monday. (AP/Guardian-UK)

Hamas on Verge of Conquest of Gaza - Avi Issacharoff
Hamas was on the verge of completing its conquest of the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, with positions in Gaza City remaining as the only significant bastions of Fatah resistance. Eight Fatah men were killed in fierce fighting near the home of senior Fatah official Maher Mekdad. Mekdad was able to escape, but Hamas took control of the area. Hamas seized control of the refugee camps in the central Gaza Strip, after it swept into the headquarters of Abbas' National Security Forces facing only token resistance.

At least 25 people were killed and dozens wounded in Tuesday's fighting, including at least 10 killed when Hamas captured the headquarters of the Fatah-allied security forces in northern Gaza. Fatah sources said Tuesday they believed Hamas was seeking a decisive victory in Gaza. (Ha'aretz)

See also Hamas Is Staging a Coup in Gaza - Danny RubinsteinPA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas says Hamas is attempting to stage a coup. Hamas' military drive seems to have been meticulously planned in advance, including the targeting of headquarters, public facilities, and particular central figures. (Ha'aretz)

See also Hamas' Gaza and Fatah's West Bank - Khaled Abu Toameh
Jamal Abu Jadian, a top Fatah commander, fled his home in northern Gaza dressed as a woman to avoid dozens of Hamas militiamen who had attacked it. But when Abu Jadian arrived at a hospital a few hundred meters away from his house, he was discovered by a group of Hamas gunmen, who took turns shooting him in the head with automatic rifles. Abu Jadian, a close ally of Fatah warlord Muhammad Dahlan and a sworn enemy of Hamas, was the third top Fatah commander to be killed by Hamas in northern Gaza in the past few weeks. All three were killed after Hamas militiamen surrounded their homes for hours, firing rocket-propelled grenades and detonating explosive charges.

Since the beginning of the year, Hamas militiamen have taken over the headquarters of the PA's General Intelligence, Force 17, Preventative Security, National Security, and Military Police in northern Gaza. On Tuesday it became clear that Hamas was now trying to extend its "victories" to the rest of Gaza. Dahlan left Gaza two months ago and is living in Cairo. At least seven other top Fatah officials have sought refuge in the West Bank. The entire Gaza Strip is likely to fall into the hands of Hamas. (JPost)

See also Hamas Captures Fatah Weapons, Armored Jeeps - Khaled Abu Toameh
A PA official revealed that Hamas managed to lay its hands on large amounts of weapons belonging to the Fatah-controlled security forces in many parts of Gaza. "They have seized thousands of rifles, large amounts of ammunition, and dozens of vehicles, including armored jeeps," he said. Hamas legislator Salah Bardaweel said his movement was determined to win the battle against Fatah. "We have decided to clean the country from these ferocious dogs who have long been serving their Israeli masters," he said. "This is a final decision and we won't backtrack." (Jerusalem Post)

See also Hamas seizes U.S. armored personnel carriers (WND)
TEL AVIV – Hamas today seized control of large caches of U.S. weapons, including eight American armored personnel carriers provided to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party, according to Hamas leaders and Fatah sources.

See also Civil War / Hamastan, Fatahstan - Amos Harel and Avi Issacharoff
A civil war is raging in Gaza - and the Islamists have the upper hand. The old Palestinian dream of a real state is fading fast. The speech that President George Bush is scheduled to deliver on June 24 (the fifth anniversary of his speech laying out a two-state vision for the Middle East) will have to undergo substantial revision. Hamas' takeover of Gaza, which seems closer than ever, is destined to split the territories into two entities that are politically and even culturally separate: Hamastan (Gaza) and Fatahstan (West Bank).

Anyone in Israel still contemplating the question of a Palestinian partner might also need to do some rethinking. In Gaza, at least, it seems there is nobody left for Israel to talk to. This time, Hamas apparently believes it is on the verge of a historic victory. On Monday it announced a call-up of all its militants and began implementing an orderly plan of action whose stated object is to eliminate Fatah in Gaza. (Ha'aretz)