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Abbas Dissolves Government As Hamas Takes Control of Gaza
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Witnesses said Hamas fighters led Fatah officers from the building at gunpoint -- some shirtless, others injured, with hands raised. Some Hamas men fell to their knees and prayed. Another group raised the green Hamas banner over the compound.
Palestinian hospital officials said at least 14 people were killed and 70 wounded in the fight for the Preventive Security headquarters, an hours-long barrage of mortar and small-arms fire. Hamas officials said four of their fighters were killed and at least seven Fatah officers died.
Hours later, marching methodically toward the sea, Hamas gunmen overran the principal Palestinian intelligence headquarters in Gaza City. The seaside presidential guard compound and a nearby Palestinian National Forces post fell just after midnight.
In the West Bank, there were reports of Fatah gunmen vandalizing Hamas-affiliated offices and seizing supporters in several major cities. The Associated Press reported that a Hamas activist was shot and killed in Nablus.
Bassem Barhoum, a spokesman in Ramallah for the Palestinian parliament, said that "it appears Abbas and his aides have decided not to respond to Hamas in the West Bank, at least not in an organized way." But he said that Hamas has been stockpiling weapons and that the price of an AK-47 assault rifle in the West Bank has nearly tripled over the past year to $3,000.
"There's a big market for them right now," Barhoum said.
Special correspondent Islam Abdelkareem in Gaza contributed to this report.
