The Army of Islam and other fringe radical groups in Gaza are reportedly seizing on Hamas’ rise to power to exploit their own agendas. Last week there was an attack on a church school in Gaza City in which the attackers decapitated Jesus on the crucifix, burnt icons, and looted computers. Today there were reports that the Army of Islam went to the Fatah-dominated Al Azhar University and gave administrators 40 days to seperate male and female students. While it’s not Hamas who is doing this, so far the now ruling Islamists have remained silent and it will be an interesting test to see whether Hamas chooses to stand up to these more extreme elements, or feels it has to give them some leeway to bolster its own Islamic street cred, especially after recent attacks on the group by Zawahiri and other global Jihad leaders.
Meanwhile, Hamas’ early efforts to disarm the Gaza Strip have proven a bit of a farce. Here’s the AP lead:
A metal door, a window frame and a faucet were the only items dropped off at a Hamas weapons collection point Thursday, a sign the Islamic militant group faces serious trouble in getting its hands on Gaza’s estimated 400,000 firearms.
1 response so far ↓
1 bijan // Jun 22, 2007 at 11:44 pm
Hamas has pulled the wool over the worlds eyes with this nonsene about the “Army of Islam” …. in a trick that Hamas learned for Al Aqsa Martyrs brigade
http://www.snappedshot.com/archives/701-Familiar-Faces.html
Hamas has learned that it can get away with any crime including the kidnaping of Alan Johnston as long as its can pin it on a newly created group. Or it can subcontract crimes like the desacration of Churches and maintain an aura of plausible denability. Hamas controls Gaza and everything that happens in it … to state otherwise as this piece does is naive. Charles has done a great job of covering the day to day ongoings in Gaza but perhaps because he is not from the region you tend to over look the subtle give away clues. Th eArmy of Islam is nothing more than a cover for Hamas.
Leave a Comment