A Palestinian youth was killed in Gaza Friday after renewed clashes broke out between Palestinian police and members of the family responsible for the death of an officer.
It is not yet clear whether the youth killed was a family member or a passerby.
Clashes erupted Thursday after a Palestinian family tried to release one of its members from detention, resulting in the death of a policeman and one family member
Earlier, dozens of Palestinian police officers forced the closure of Gaza's Rafah crossing to protest the killing of their colleague in Gaza a day earlier.
The policemen held a demonstration to protest what they characterized as the powerlessness of the Palestinian Authority and demanded
the PA detain those behind their colleague's killing. The officers also want the PA to provide them with more arms and to recruit additional officers.
During the protest, clashes broke out between the policemen and other Palestinian security officers, namely National Security Service members who secure the crossing. The clashes prompted some European monitors stationed at the crossing and tasked with preventing wanted Palestinian suspects from passing through to abandon their positions.
Later Friday, the Palestinian police chief announced the situation at the Gaza-Egypt border was brought under control.
Alaa Housni said the standoff at the Rafah crossing has ended, but said the border will probably not be reopened on Friday and that Europeans monitors would return either Friday or Saturday.
However, by Friday afternoon, official Palestinian sources and European monitors announced the crossing has been reopened
Police station raided
The Palestinian police officer killed Thursday died after gunmen mostly belonging to one family raided a Gaza police station and opened fire, wounding other officers. One of the assailants was also killed and other attackers sustained wounds during the exchanges of fire at the station.
The family members were apparently furious over the arrest of a relative, detained at the Rafah crossing upon his return from Egypt on suspicion of drug smuggling.
During the killed officer's funeral Thursday, Palestinian police fired in the air when the funeral procession passed by Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas' home. At one point rumors were circulating that policemen fired in Abbas' direction, but it quickly turned out the PA chairman was in Jordan at the time.
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