WORLD> Middle East
Israel to return Gazans who fled internal fighting
(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-08-03 19:14

Nimr Hammad, a political adviser to Abbas, said anyone wanted by Hamas would be allowed to remain in the West Bank for their safety, while the rest will be returned "to their families and their homes." He would not say how many were included in each group or offer an explanation for the move.

Israel said it was Abbas who originally asked to let them through, but the Palestinian leader might fear that allowing the men to stay in the West Bank would be handing Hamas a victory while weakening his own supporters in Gaza.

A Hamas spokesman, Sami Abu Zuhri, said Hamas had arrested the men who were sent back and would question them. Any not involved in "criminal acts" would be released, he said.

Wary Israeli troops allowed the Gazans to cross the heavily guarded border on Saturday, stripping them first to make sure none were concealing weapons or wearing explosives. Soldiers prepared stretchers, and ambulances rushed the badly wounded to nearby hospitals. Mortar shells landed nearby as the Palestinians crossed into Israel.

One of the wounded men, Shadi Hilles, was hospitalized Sunday morning in the Israeli town of Ashkelon. He said he was wounded when Hamas attacked the clan's compound with shoulder-launched rockets and mortars, forcing him to crawl through nearby fields to safety.

"We crawled to the border, that was our solution, and I think we stayed at the border for two or three hours until the army let the injured enter," he said.

The incident began Saturday when Hamas forces launched a raid on a crowded Gaza City neighborhood dominated by the Hilles clan. The sides battled each other with mortars and machine guns. Three Hamas men were killed, along with six Fatah supporters.

The Hamas raid was part of an intensifying weeklong crackdown sparked by a mysterious explosion on July 25 that killed five Hamas men and a six-year old girl. Hamas blamed Fatah and began rounding up the rival group's members. Fatah denied the charge and launched a retaliatory crackdown against Hamas in the West Bank.

Hamas alleged that the Hilles clan was hiding those who perpetrated the attack. The Islamic group's forces prevailed after heavy fighting in the neighborhood's streets.