Alan Johnston update
Prima in Gaza | 20.04.2007 07:30
Johnston has fallen victim to the power struggle within Gaza that followed the IDF pull out. The JTB are its claimed unkown to the PA according to Ismail Haniya. Hani Kawasmeh, the interior minister but this only means they don't recognise the name not the people. The group is unknown in Gaza, but the name has been used in Iraq and elsewhere in the Middle East by organisations linked to al-Qaeda. In direct translation, it means "Brigades of Holy War and Unity".
The abduction is symptomatic of a larger breakdown of law and order in the coastal enclave, where militias affiliated with factions and clans hold sway. Speculation about who was to blame for the kidnapping has been focused on a large Gaza City clan, the Doghmash family, but a family leader has denied any link to Mr Johnston's disappearance.
Reuven Paz, the director of the Israel-based Project for Research of Islamist Movements, said more and more individuals in Gaza were publicly identifying with al-Qaeda."The question is whether this is a genuine announcement of a group identified with al-Qaeda or someone attempting disinformation. But it is very fitting with al-Qaeda behaviour in Iraq and Afghanistan to kidnap a journalist and to kill him."
Ater the Israelis left Gaza harline Islamists have tried to take control over the PA with enforcement of veils and a ban on drinking.
The abduction is symptomatic of a larger breakdown of law and order in the coastal enclave, where militias affiliated with factions and clans hold sway. Speculation about who was to blame for the kidnapping has been focused on a large Gaza City clan, the Doghmash family, but a family leader has denied any link to Mr Johnston's disappearance.
Reuven Paz, the director of the Israel-based Project for Research of Islamist Movements, said more and more individuals in Gaza were publicly identifying with al-Qaeda."The question is whether this is a genuine announcement of a group identified with al-Qaeda or someone attempting disinformation. But it is very fitting with al-Qaeda behaviour in Iraq and Afghanistan to kidnap a journalist and to kill him."
Ater the Israelis left Gaza harline Islamists have tried to take control over the PA with enforcement of veils and a ban on drinking.
Prima in Gaza
Comments
Display the following 12 comments