Almotamar.net, Google - A two-day battle between the imam, who wanted to impose Islamic law and Hamas forces left 27 other people dead. The crackdown could allow Hamas to be seen as a bulwark against militancy by the West.
An imam who wanted to impose Islamic law in the Gaza Strip was killed today in an explosion at one of his hideouts, ending a two-day battle between his armed followers and Hamas government forces that left 27 other people dead.
The security crackdown could allow Hamas, which has tried to court favor with the West, to position itself as a moderate Islamic bulwark against militant forces inspired by Al Qaeda.
But the challenge by the imam, Abdel-Latif Moussa, also pointed to splits among Hamas' followers. Residents of the southern city of Rafah, where the clash occurred, said several former Hamas militants were killed while fighting for the imam's group, the Soldiers of the Companions of God.
Hamas Interior Ministry spokesman Ihab Ghussein said the imam had espoused "perverted ideas and considered all Gazans as unbelievers" and had allegedly orchestrated the bombings of Internet cafes and a wedding party.
The spokesman said Hamas appealed to scholars, clerics and parents to "educate the Palestinian people in correct and moderate Islam."
Moussa provoked the clash Friday by announcing a campaign to impose religious law by force of arms. He made the declaration during a midday sermon in Rafah surrounded by black-clad gunmen who then holed up with him in a mosque and fought off Hamas security forces who besieged the building.
The rebels eventually abandoned the mosque through an underground tunnel and continued the fight from nearby homes. After an overnight lull, a Hamas negotiator approached the imam's hideout in an attempt to talk him into surrendering. An explosion rocked the house, killing the imam, his aide and the negotiator, Ghussein said.
Ghussein said the aide, a Syrian national of Palestinian origin, set off the explosion by detonating a suicide belt. There was no confirmation of the account by the imam's surviving supporters.
The United Arab Emirates acknowledged on Tuesday that two of its pilots were killed when their military aggression plane crashed over Jawf province, a military official said
The official added that the aggressive crashed plane was an apache that was
Artillery of the army and popular shelled a gathering of Saudi-paid mercenaries in al-Moqadra area in Serwah district of Marib province, a military official said on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, dozens of Saudi-paid mercenaries were killed and others injured in Wadi al-Theek in the district, the official added.
The army and popular forces carried out on Monday unique military operations in Taiz province.
A military official said that a number of Saudi-paid mercenaries were killed at the hands of the army and popular forces in al-Jazami Hill in al-Kadaha area in al-Ma'afer district.
A Saudi aggression fighter jet targeted a citizen's car driving in Fara area of Kutaf district in Saada province overnight, killing the driver and injuring his friend, a security official said on Monday.
The army artillery and popular committees launched a fierce attack on Saudi-paid mercenaries' sites in Jawf province, a military official said on Monday.
The attack destroyed a military vehicle belonging to the mercenaries and killed all on board in Sabran area in khab and shaaf district.
Scores of Saudi enemy soldiers were killed and injured on Sunday when the army and popular forces repelled a Saudi military attempt to sneak into Shurfah site in the border province of Najran, a military official said.
The operation was accomplished successfully against the Saudi
The army and popular committees have killed a total of 18 Saudi-paid mercenaries in sniper operations over the past hours in the central province of Marib, a military official said on Sunday.
Ten mercenaries were killed in Nehm district and eight others were killed in Serwah district, said the official.
Saudi aggression warplanes have launched more than 49 airstrikes over the past hours on several residential areas across Yemen, a security official said on Sunday.
The airstrikes targeted the areas of Malahiz and Husama in Dhahir district, and areas Thuban, Masahif and Sdad in Bakim district of northern Saada province.
Hard-line imam's death ends bloody clash in Gaza Strip
