3 Palestinian kids killed in Gaza shooting

[Ban Hammer 13,517]

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Palestinian gunmen killed three young children of a senior Palestinian intelligence officer Monday, pumping dozens of bullets into their car as it passed through a street crowded with schoolchildren — an unprecedented attack that could ignite widespread factional fighting.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility, and Hamas denounced the drive-by attack.

But the children's father, Baha Balousheh, is considered a leading enemy of the ruling Islamic Hamas movement. Balousheh, a loyalist of President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah movement, was a chief interrogator during a crackdown on Hamas.

The children's car was riddled with some 60 bullets by gunmen driving in two vehicles, Palestinian security officials said. Its seats, schoolbags and a small plastic bag with a sandwich in it were splattered with blood.

Three of Balousheh's children, ranging in age from six to 10, were killed, along with an adult, hospital officials said. Four more people were wounded in the attack in Palestine Street, lined with nine schools. Balousheh was not in the area.

Security officials said they believed Balousheh was the target, noting that black shades were drawn over the car's windows, blocking a view of the passengers.

"Palestinian security has opened an investigation into the incident, which we consider the ugliest" in the growing chaos in Gaza, the officials said in a statement.

When the firing began, children dropped to the ground or fled, screaming.

"I was walking with my young brother, Wael, who is 9, and we just crossed the street in order to take him to the school when shooting took place," said 12-year-old Fadwa Nabulsi, still shaken by the bloody scene.

"We saw fire coming from one car. We started screaming and children started running. I was crying, and I lost Wael for about half an hour. Then I found him hiding in a felafel shop. I'm trying to find my father to take us back home," she said.

Dozens of Palestinian police were trying to calm the children and help them locate their parents. Hundreds of anxious parents rushed to Gaza City's Shifa Hospital to get word on their children.

Two hours after the attack, black smoke engulfed the area, as young Fatah activists burned tires in protest. Intelligence officers gathered at the Balousheh home, near the scene of the attack, to show support.

Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum condemned the attack as an "awful, ugly crime against innocent children." He said the assailants were undermining Palestinian interests by creating chaos and confusion.

An Abbas aide, Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat, said he was concerned the attack will lead to a large-scale confrontation. "If this continues, it will lead to our worst nightmare, internal fighting," Erekat said.

Gaza has been plagued by factional violence in the past, with dozens killed and hundreds wounded. However, Monday's attack targeting children was unprecedented, and was likely to trigger widespread confrontations at a time when the lines between Hamas and Fatah have hardened.

Earlier this month, Abbas announced that talks on forming a unity government between Hamas and Fatah have broken down. Earlier this week, he raised the possibility of calling early elections, drawing angry protests by Hamas which said he does not have the authority to dissolve the Hamas-dominated parliament.

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[Ban Hammer 13,517]

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