(CNN) The Hamas-led Palestinian government told its security forces Thursday to fight Israeli troops moving into Gaza. Palestinian Interior Minister Saeed Siyyam told security forces to rise up and "confront this incursion." But it was unclear how many would heed his call. Most of those forces in Gaza are loyal to the Fatah party and PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, not to Hamas or Siyyam. Abbas was not involved in the order to security forces to join the fray, said Palestinian legislator Saeb Erekat. "The purpose of Israel's limited incursion into the northern Gaza Strip is to halt the barrage of rockets and missiles that have been hitting Israeli population centers and Israeli cities and terrorizing the population," said Mark Regev, an Israel Foreign Ministry spokesman. "We will be there to reduce the threat. We have no intention of re-occupying Gaza, but it is our obligation to safeguard the lives of our citizens."
2006-07-07 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive