In wake of the bombings, Hamas has sought to eliminate the Fatah
presence in the Gaza Strip. At the same time, Hamas attacked such major
Fatah-aligned clans as Hilles, based in Gaza City.
"Ahmed Hilles, the senior figure in the clan, had served as Fatah's
director-general in Gaza and is [Mohammed] Dahlan's biggest rival," the
report said. "He headed the group of Fatah operatives who cooperated with
Hamas, but this did not help him in the current confrontation. It was
important to Hamas to break the clan's military strength, the only locus of
Fatah power left in the Strip."
[On Sept. 24, Hilles was allowed to enter the West Bank town of Jericho.
The Palestinian Authority said Hilles, released from Israeli custody, would
be allowed to remain at Public Intelligence Administration headquarters in
Jericho for 17 days.]
The report said Hamas also imposed its rule on the Dughmoush clan in the
Sabra neighborhood of Gaza City. Dughmoush was said to have sponsored the Al
Qaida-inspired Army of Islam, which conducted numerous abductions in 2006
and 2007.
Hamas also cracked down on the Abu Reish clan in the southern Gaza
Strip. The clan, led by Ahmed Abu Reish, has been identified as a major
player in the tunnel smuggling industry.
"This clan suffered a heavy blow when dozens of its members were
arrested and stripped of their weapons," the report said. "The containment
of the Abu Reish clan strengthens Hamas' control of the smuggling industry
and of all that takes place along the Egyptian border."
