By Xinhua
Gaza : The death toll rose to four in armed clashes on Monday night between Fatah loyalists and Hamas police in southern Gaza Strip, a Xinhua correspondent learnt from Gaza.
Palestinian sources told the Xinhua correspondent that a 12-year-old boy, another civilian and two members of the Hamas police were killed during the clash.
Earlier, medics at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis said that two Hamas police men were shot dead by unknown militants and Hamas police accused Fatah militants for killing them.
At least two Palestinians were killed and 22 others wounded during the clashes as the Fatah movement of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas marked the 43rd anniversary of its establishment, medical sources said.
Seven people sustained shot wounds and 15 others were beaten upby Hamas police forces during the riot in the city of Khan Younis, according to the medics.
Witnesses said that hundreds of Palestinian supporters took to the streets on Monday night, chanting slogans and waving the yellow flags of their movement.
The celebration turned violent after Hamas police officers opened fire and beat up dozens of Fatah supporters, they added.
Hamas security forces tried to prevent Fatah in Gaza from celebrating its 43rd anniversary in a bid to retaliate Fatah’s ban of Hamas supporters from commemorating its founding in the West Bank two weeks ago.
Meanwhile, witnesses said that Fatah supporters celebrated the 43rd anniversary with fireworks in Gaza City, where sounds of fireworks explosions could be heard and its flashes could be seen in the sky.
Also on Monday, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called on Islamic Hamas movement to halt its control of the coastal Gaza Strip and resume dialogue to end the ongoing internal Palestinian crisis.
Abbas made the appeal in a televised speech on the occasion to mark the 43rd anniversary of Fatah establishment. He also presented an initiative of reconciliation with Hamas.
“I call those in Hamas movement who led the illegal military coup against the legitimate Palestinian leadership in Gaza to open a new page and a new era based on calm dialogue,” said Abbas.