The amazing opening/closing Rafah border, brought to you by the creme de la creme of palestinian society, is shut down by gun-totin’ terrorists once again.
RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) – Dozens of Palestinian gunmen firing in the air blocked access to the Gaza-Egypt border and took over four government buildings Wednesday, demanding the release of their leader.
The gunmen belong to the Al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, a violent offshoot of Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah Party. Fatah-affiliated vigilantes demanding government jobs or trying to get friends out of prison have been responsible for much of the growing anarchy in Gaza, particularly since Israel’s pullout in September.
The latest incident began late Tuesday, when Palestinian intelligence arrested Alaa al-Hams, an Al Aqsa militant, on suspicion he and his followers kidnapped British human rights activist Kate Burton and her parents for two days last week. The Burtons were among 19 foreigners abducted by Fatah gunmen in Gaza in recent months. All have been freed unharmed.
Following al-Hams’ detention, his followers fired at the Palestinian security headquarters in the southern town of Rafah where he was being held.
I think the palestinians should take pride in these representatives of their society. This, too, is the legacy of Arafat–who played one faction against another, and murdered any possible political rivals who happened to think of the palestinians instead of themselves.
And you simply have to love this AP whitewashing:
The crossing was handed to Palestinian control, under European supervision, as part of a U.S.-brokered deal with Israel last month. Since then, the crossing was forced to shut down several times during attacks by gunmen.
[…] Abbas has complained about the growing lawlessness, saying it is harming Palestinian statehood aspirations and economic development. However, he has been unable to impose order, and his failure to keep the gunmen in check is expected to harm Fatah’s prospects in a Jan. 25 parliament election.
The tightly run Islamic militant Hamas, whose followers have rarely been involved in vigilante violence, is expected to do well in the vote against the corruption-tainted Fatah.
Vigilante violence? Vigilante? You mean, those who work outside the law to impose the law on others? That kind of vigilante violence?
Get a dictionary, AP. I don’t think that word means what you think it means.
Heh heh. Buried in the account –
Pallies flee into Egypt
“In other chaos, Palestinian gunmen burst into a Rafah house early Wednesday and tried to kidnap the parents of Rachel Corrie”
And I am still waiting for a response to the PA’s plea for Israeli techs to come back and teach them how to run those greenhouses. Seems just scattering seed on the ground is not enough.