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Mosque gun battle rages in Gaza | Mosque gun battle rages in Gaza |
(20 minutes later) | |
At least six people have been killed and dozens injured in a fierce gun battle in Gaza, emergency services say. | At least six people have been killed and dozens injured in a fierce gun battle in Gaza, emergency services say. |
Eyewitnesses say hundreds of Hamas fighters and policemen surrounded then raided a mosque where followers of a radical Islamist cleric were holed up. | |
They had fired rocket-propelled grenades at the mosque in Rafah, near the Egyptian border, witnesses say. | |
It is thought that at least 100 supporters of the al-Qaeda-linked group Warriors of God are inside. | It is thought that at least 100 supporters of the al-Qaeda-linked group Warriors of God are inside. |
Hamas said a grenade fired from the mosque killed one of its fighters. The other fatalities were reported to be gunmen, and a child was also killed. | |
Fighting pledge | Fighting pledge |
Earlier, during Friday prayers, hundreds of worshippers at Ibn-Taymiyah mosque declared Gaza an "Islamic emirate". | |
The mosque's imam - Abdel-Latif Moussa - and armed supporters swore to fight to the death rather than hand over authority of the mosque to Hamas. | The mosque's imam - Abdel-Latif Moussa - and armed supporters swore to fight to the death rather than hand over authority of the mosque to Hamas. |
The Salafi Warriors of God, or Jund Ansar Allah, gained some prominence two months ago when it staged a failed attack on a border crossing between Gaza and Israel. | |
The group is very critical of Hamas, which governs Gaza, accusing the Islamist group of not being Islamist enough. | The group is very critical of Hamas, which governs Gaza, accusing the Islamist group of not being Islamist enough. |
Hamas has cracked down on al-Qaeda-inspired groups in the past. | |
It is concerned they may attract more extremist members, and has forbidden anyone except what it describes as Hamas security personnel to carry weapons in Gaza. | It is concerned they may attract more extremist members, and has forbidden anyone except what it describes as Hamas security personnel to carry weapons in Gaza. |