Army of Islam gunmen march in funeral (Gaza City, Gaza Strip)

AP on Yahoo ^ | 9/28/07 | Ibrahim Barzak - ap

[NormsRevenge]

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Hundreds of gunmen from the shadowy Army of Islam marched in a funeral for five Gaza militants Thursday, firing in the air in their first public appearance in such large numbers.

The five Army of Islam members buried Thursday were among a total of 12 Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes over two days. The Israeli military said it has targeted militants involved in rocket fire on Israeli border towns.

A statement from the group posted on Islamic Web sites on Thursday said a sixth member wounded in Wednesday's strike against its men had since died of his injuries, but did not say when.

The Army of Islam, an offshot of Gaza's ruling Hamas group, has been linked to the March kidnapping of BBC journalist Alan Johnston, since released, and the June 2006 capture of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. Individual members have made public statements, but the size of the group was never apparent.

However, some 300 Army of Islam gunmen marched in Thursday's funeral procession. Sporting long beards and black headbands, many wore dark robes, a style of dress more common in Afghanistan or Pakistan than in Gaza. Gunmen, some wearing masks, fired Kalashnikov and M-16 assault rifles in the air.

The relationship between the Army of Islam and Hamas is murky. The Army of Islam is considered more extreme in its Islamic ideology than Hamas, which seized control of Gaza in June.

The Israeli army said it had targeted the Army of Islam members because their jeep was carrying homemade rockets ready for use. Thirteen rockets and dozens of mortar shells have hit Israel since Wednesday, despite warnings by Defense Minister Ehud Barak that he is moving closer to ordering a large-scale military offensive in Gaza. The rockets caused no injuries.

The Israeli military said ground forces fired at a Palestinian rocket-launching squad in the northern Gaza Strip Thursday, after rockets were launched at Israel. Palestinian security officials said a militant of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine was killed by the Israeli fire. They said he was not participating in the rocket fire but was moving, armed, near a launch site when he was hit.

Last week, the Israeli government declared Gaza "hostile territory," setting the stage for a possible cutoff of electricity to the impoverished coastal territory, which has 1.4 million residents.

In all, 12 Palestinians were killed in Israeli strikes on Wednesday and Thursday.

Following Wednesday's airstrike, Israeli tanks and bulldozers briefly entered the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanoun, in response to rocket fire from the area. At one point, a tank shell was fired toward a group of people between two houses, killing four and wounding 25, witnesses and hospital doctors said.

The army said the shell was fired toward militants carrying anti-tank missiles.

Early Thursday, Israeli aircraft fired a missile toward a group of militants near Beit Hanoun, killing two and wounding five, hospital doctors said.

David Baker, an Israeli government spokesman, said Israel's strikes are part of a "continuous policy of preventing terrorist activity against our civilians, including our taking pre-emptive measures as needed to thwart these attacks."

A top aide to the head of the Hamas government in Gaza, Ismail Haniyeh, said the Israeli operations strengthened the resolve of Gazans.

"The honorable Palestinian blood shed by this Nazi army will only make us more steadfast," said the aide, Mohammed Madhoun.

[NormsRevenge]

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Palestinians carry the body of Army of Islam militant Hussin Aheel during his funeral in Gaza City, Thursday, Sept. 27, 2007. Aheell was killed in an Israeli missile strike that targeted a jeep carrying him and other members of the Army of Islam, a small militant group involved in the March kidnapping of a BBC journalist, since released, and the June 2006 capture of an Israeli soldier. Five passengers were killed, the Army of Islam said. The Israeli military said the jeep was carrying rockets ready for use.(AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)

[NormsRevenge]

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(L)Palestinian women cry and (R) a Palestinian girl watches the funeral during the funeral of Islamic Jihad militant Thair al-Basyoni, who was killed by an Israeli tank shell, in the northern Gaza strip September 27, 2007. Israel killed 10 Palestinians in military operations in the Gaza Strip and threatened a major ground sweep of the Hamas-run territory to stem rocket fire. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem (GAZA)

[NormsRevenge]

The relationship between the Army of Islam and Hamas is murky. The Army of Islam is considered more extreme in its Islamic ideology than Hamas, which seized control of Gaza in June.

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Who is funding them?

[kinoxi]

I used to think that the ‘barrel of monkeys’ was just a kid’s game...

[NormsRevenge]

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Palestinians inspect a destroyed vehicle following an Israeli air strike in Gaza September 26, 2007. (Mohammed Salem/Reuters)

[kinoxi]

Hey... wait a minute... those debris fields don’t fit together like their a’sspoded to. I want my money back. WhaaHH.

[LjubivojeRadosavljevic]

"Who is funding them?"

Hamas would be a source of funding. However, that is difficult and "murky" to discern.

[SJackson]

If you'd like to be on this middle east/political ping list, please FR mail me.

High Volume. Articles on Israel can also be found by clicking on the Topic or Keyword Israel. or WOT [War on Terror]

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[FreedomPoster]

There was a missed opportunity for a big PGM.

[MarkL]

Who is funding them?

Unfortunately for us, and the Israeli civilians they murder, as well as some innocents who, being used as shields by the palis, are caught in the crossfire, it's the American taxpayer. And those in the ME who sell us oil.

Mark

[M. Espinola]

"Who is funding them?"

It's either Iran if they are leaning toward Shia, or Saudi Arabia if they are interlinked with Wahhabist/Sunni al-Qaida.