(Der Spiegel-Germany) Ulrike Putz - A new water park in Gaza provided relief from monotony and misery. Hamas, though, has now burned it down. One night in late September at 3 a.m., around 30 members of Hamas appeared, tied up the park's 10 security guards and got to work with gas canisters and lighters. The flames engulfing the water park's buildings could be seen from as far away as Gaza City. "That's one and a half million dollars, up in smoke," says co-owner Alladin Mohammed al-Araj, a former economics minister in the Hamas government. He says the targeting of his water park is due to the increased influence of hard-liners within the government. Hamas has split into two camps: the "Erdoganis" and "Talibanis." The first faction supposedly adheres to the ideas of Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan, advocating a democratic system with a nod to Islam. The hard-liners allegedly model themselves after the Taliban in Afghanistan and aspire to install a theocratic government. When the attackers struck a month ago, they told the guards that, next time, they would get a bullet to the head. Since then, 6 of the 10 guards on the night shift have quit.
2010-11-12 08:29:59Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive