Palestinians Kill Hamas-Linked Judge

Palestinian gunmen from the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, a group linked to the Fatah Movement, shoot in the air during a demonstration in the West Bank city of Nablus Tuesday Dec. 12, 2006. The demonstration was organized to protest the deaths of the children of senior intelligence officer Baha Balousheh, whose car was riddled with bullets as they drove to school Monday morning. Fatah officials have accused Hamas of being behind the shooting. The children's father is an intelligence officer and Fatah loyalist who is considered an enemy of Hamas. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed) (Majdi Mohammed - AP)

KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip -- Palestinian gunmen forced a Hamas commander to his knees and fatally shot him early Wednesday outside of the courthouse where he worked as an Islamic judge, escalating factional tensions in the Gaza Strip.

The shooting came two days after the killing of the three young children of a Fatah-allied Palestinian intelligence officer, which sparked fresh conflict between the rival Hamas and Fatah factions. The violence has reduced chances for a unity government and pushed the two sides closer to civil war.

Palestinian security officials said the slain man was Bassam al-Fara, 30, a jurist at the Islamic court and a Hamas commander who belongs to the largest clan in the southern town of Khan Younis.

Witnesses to the shooting said four gunmen calmly ate breakfast at a food stand as they waited for al-Fara outside the courthouse.

When he emerged from a taxi, three of the men grabbed him and forced him onto his knees, while the fourth pulled out a weapon and shot him. The attack left the sidewalk riddled with bullet holes. The witnesses declined to be identified, fearing for their safety.

Dozens gathered at the scene and Palestinian security officers set up roadblocks. Hamas militants set up their own roadblocks throughout town, searching for the shooters.

In a statement faxed to reporters, Hamas openly accused what it called a Fatah "death squad" of the killing.

Fauzi Barhoum, a Hamas spokesman, gave no further details about al-Fara's militant activities but pledged to hunt down the killers.

"This is an ugly crime committed against one of the field commanders of Hamas' military wing and one of the prominent figures in Hamas," Barhoum said. "The fingers that shot him are the same fingers that were involved in the killing of previous Hamas leaders. "Hamas is not going to forget the blood of its members. It is going to pursue and bring those who were involved in today's crime to justice."

Fatah spokesman Tawfik Abu Khoussa rejected the accusations.

"We condemn all acts of anarchy, whatever may be behind them. We call on the brothers in Hamas to stop firing accusations before the investigation," he said.

Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh said from Sudan that he would cut short a foreign trip and return to Gaza.