RAFAH, Gaza Strip -Security chaos in the Gaza Strip escalated further on Wednesday when gunmen loyal to the ruling Fatah faction barred access to the border with Egypt and tried to kidnap the parents of an American peace activist killed by an Israeli bulldozer three years ago.
After taking over a series of government buildings in the city of Rafah, around 100 gunmen supposedly loyal to Fatah then took up positions at the entrance to the border crossing, which is Gaza’s only link to the outside world.
Witnesses said the gunmen had initially allowed civilians into the terminal after checking their identities, in a bid to stop only those affiliated with the Palestinian Authority. But they later prevented anyone from approaching the terminal, the second time in less than a week that the Rafah crossing has been forced to close.
| Wonder if it's also closed to heavy weapons' smuggling? |
Security sources and witnesses said the gunmen were demanding the release of a local leader of the radical Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, an armed offshoot of Fatah, who has been arrested over his alleged involvement in the kidnapping of Gaza-based British rights activist Kate Burton and her parents. |