Fatah strongman Dahlan vows to confront Hamas
Source: Reuters
By Wafa Amr RAMALLAH, West Bank, Jan 19 (Reuters) - A top adviser to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah issued a veiled threat to the governing Hamas leadership on Friday saying he would "protect" his party's members from being killed by Hamas. "I will not accept, or remain silent, if somebody from Fatah is killed by Hamas. No way. There is no compromise on this. If Hamas kills somebody from Fatah, I will confront them," Fatah strongman Mohammad Dahlan said in the occupied West Bank town of Ramallah. Islamist Hamas and Fatah have been locked in factional fighting in the Gaza Strip since Abbas called for early presidential and parliamentary elections last month. At least 30 Palestinians have been killed in the violence. Dahlan is one of a small number of Palestinian officials who met U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice during her visit to the region this week. The United States has pledged $86 million to bolster Abbas's presidential guard forces but it is unclear what role Dahlan might play in the effort, if any. Since Hamas trounced once-dominant Fatah in parliamentary elections a year ago, Hamas leaders have accused Fatah of attempting to oust it from power. They have also threatened to kill Dahlan whom they say has tried to assassinate Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas. Dahlan and Fatah have blamed Hamas for killing several of their members, though the two sides say publicly that they are trying to form a national unity government. "Hamas has planned and executed political assassinations against Fatah, but because they have failed to govern they want to rule through the gun. This doesn't work and Fatah told them so at a major rally on Jan. 7," Dahlan told reporters. "I said at the rally that we are not going to respond to blood with blood, but we are going to protect our people and we have already begun doing this. It is happening right now." Hamas has struggled to govern since taking office last March under the weight of U.S.-led sanctions imposed because of its refusal to recognise the Jewish state, renounce violence and abide by interim peace deals. Dahlan, a Fatah reformist who has openly criticised the veteran leadership for maintaining its grip on power, said his faction admits it erred during its decade in power but that it aimed to regain public confidence through implementing reforms. He said internal elections to choose a new, younger leadership were under way in parts of the Gaza Strip. "Reforms are under way. A new local leadership has been chosen and is entrusted with ensuring elections take place," Dahlan said. Senior Fatah officials are divided over supporting Dahlan's growing overall strength within the movement and his emergence as a dominant leader in the Gaza Strip. Asked how he views his own role, Dahlan said: "I am a member of Fatah, I will continue to serve Fatah. The sons of Fatah like me and I love them. Forget about the suit I'm wearing, I'm a street boy."
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