 GAZA - Dozens of Palestinian supporters from Hamas and President Mahmoud AbbasÂ’s Fatah faction were wounded on Saturday in clashes in the Gaza Strip sparked by a growing dispute over control of security in the territory.
| There's no dispute over 'control of security', since there's no security to control ... |
The clashes, the worst between the groups in several months, began when student supporters of the factions seethed, made faces and then hurled stones at one another outside a Gaza university and intensified when gunmen intervened. Medics said 20 people were wounded by stones and pipe bombs.
| What about the gunmen -- didn't they hit anyone? Or were they too busy looking dashing cool by shooting from the hip? |
Police forces were unable to control the clashes, which ended within hours, witnesses said.
Hamas, an Islamic militant group elected to head the Palestinian government in a January vote, announced on Thursday the formation of a new security force to be headed by a top militant loyal to the faction. Abbas later vetoed the decision. The Palestinian presidentÂ’s move prompted sharp reaction from Khaled Meshaal, the exiled leader of Hamas who said on Friday that Abbas and other members of his Fatah faction were assisting a Western campaign to isolate the new government.
| Which the new government was keen to do on its own ... |
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