At least 27 people have been killed in clashes between two armed groups in Gaza just days after Israel and Hamas reached a ceasefire agreement and agreed to release Israeli hostages.
Hamas, the main Palestinian group in the embattled Strip, clashed with members of the Dughmush clan in the city’s Sabra neighbourhood over the weekend near the Jordanian hospital in one of the most violent internal confrontations in many days.
A 28-year-old journalist, who had gained prominence for his videos covering the war, was shot and killed while covering the clash, Al Jazeera reported. A senior source in Gaza’s internal ministry told the broadcaster that the clashes in Gaza City involved “an armed militia affiliated with the [Israeli] occupation”.
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The source claimed security units surrounded them and engaged in heavy fighting, which resulted in the deaths of eight members of the Hamas-run security forces. At least 19 members of the Dughmush clan were also killed in the clash.
Locals described the scenes of panic as the internal fighting forced the displaced Palestinians to flee their homes due to the heavy gunfire. “This time people weren’t fleeing Israeli attacks,” one resident told BBC News. “They were running from their own people.”
The interior ministry said the clashes erupted as the security forces were working to restore order, warning that “any armed activity carried out outside the framework of the resistance” would be met with a firm response.
The report said the Hamas-run interior ministry had accused a local militia of attacking its security forces, while members of the Doghmush clan claimed Hamas had used the ceasefire as a pretext to target them over alleged collaboration with Israel.
“Children are screaming and dying, they are burning our houses,” a relative of the clan told Ynet. “We are trapped. I don’t know how they entered with all kinds of weapons. Where were they when the Jews were here? They arrested all the youths, lined them up against walls, pointed weapons at their heads. There is a massacre here,” another member said.
