Special to WorldTribune.com

RAMALLAH — Dissidents from the ruling Fatah movement have been
forming militias financed by Iran.

Palestinian sources said Fatah dissidents in the Gaza Strip were allowed
to form armed groups without allegiance to Palestinian Authority Chairman
Mahmoud Abbas.

The sources said at least one such Fatah-origin militia has been authorized by the Hamas regime and funded by Iran’s Islamic
Revolutionary Guard Corps.

“Iran has been happy to split the [Fatah] movement, and there are people who have been tempted by the money,” a Palestinian source said.

One breakaway Fatah militia was identified as Abdul Qadir Al Husseini Battalions, said to have more than 100 members. The sources said Abdul Qadir was formed by former members of the Ayman Judah group, which sought to prevent the split.

The sources said Abdul Qadir has won financial and other support from IRGC as well as the Iranian-sponsored Hizbullah. They said the money has fueled recruitment by Abdul Qadir from Ayman and other Fatah militias in the Gaza Strip.

Several of the militias have consisted of Fatah gunmen and were identified as An Ansar Battalions, Al Mujahadeen, Imad
Mughniyah, Ahmed Abu Al Rish and Jihad Al Imarain Brigade. These militias
were formed after the death of PA Chairman Yasser Arafat in 2004.

In May 2012, a clash erupted between Abdul Qadir and Ayman in Gaza City.
The sources said Hamas police arrested gunmen from both militias and
released them about a day later.

Over the last 18 months, Hamas has quietly allowed Fatah to restore
militias that pledged loyalty to the Islamic regime in the Gaza Strip. In
2011, one Fatah militia was equipped and trained to fire short-range rockets
into Israel.

Abbas is said to have cut funding to Fatah militias in the West Bank
and Gaza Strip. In May, Abbas ordered security forces to arrest scores of
Fatah gunmen and PA officers linked to the death of the government of Jenin,
Qaddoura Mussa.

  Abdul Qadir Al Husseini Battalions, Gaza Strip, Iran funding splinters Fatah militias in Gaza, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Mahmoud Abbas, Yasser Arafat