Militants loosely affiliated to the Fatah Party of Mahmoud Abbas stormed public offices in Nablus under a hail of gunfire, accusing the Palestinian president of failing to honor security promises. The drama occurred as Abbas was locked in talks with his governing Fatah Party, which is facing a deepening rift with rivals Hamas over his decision to delay parliamentary elections. Some 15 members of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades fired in the air at the entrance to Nablus Governor Mohammad al-Aalloul's office and stormed into the Interior Ministry in the West Bank city. Nablus governor Aalloul was in Ramallah at the time. "We demand that the Palestinian Authority, especially Abu Mazen (Abbas), keeps their promises. He promised us jobs in the security services and that he would secure our safety. We have seen none of it," Al-Aqsa said in a statement.
Witnesses said an employee at the governor's office was slightly wounded in the incident. A spokesman for the brigades said the gunmen shot him accidentally. The takeover was the latest sign of chaos in the West Bank and Gaza, where armed gangs have become increasingly powerful in more than four years of Israeli-Palestinian fighting. Abbas has promised to restore order, so far with few results. In Gaza, Palestinian officials said around 40 Fatah-affiliated militants who closed off access to the Egyptian border crossing in a similar protest would be granted security jobs. |