Masked Palestinian gunmen briefly kidnapped an Italian peace activist in the Gaza Strip and blew up a United Nations club on Sunday in separate incidents that underscored growing internal unrest.
They dealt an embarrassing blow to Chairman Mahmoud Abbas just hours after he had vowed to end disorder that threatens to derail a Jan. 25 election and as militant groups spurned his plea to renew a truce with Israel.
Berndardini after being freed (Photo: AFP)
Firing shots in the air, the gunmen seized Alessandro Bernardini during a visit by a delegation of 18 Italians ahead of the parliamentary election. He was freed after several hours. Three British hostages were set free in
Gaza on Friday.
'I will never change'
Palestinian security forces said they briefly came under fire from the kidnappers, but found the gunmen had abandoned Bernardini before they reached the building where he was being held.
"I am fine, I am fine ... They gave me cigarettes and tea," Bernardini told reporters, looking shaken but unhurt.
"I will never change my idea about the occupation," he said. An armed offshoot of Abbas' own ruling Fatah movement said it carried out the kidnapping.
The faction, calling itself Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades-Sunni People, said its demands were a full investigation into the death of Yasser Arafat in 2004 and the removal of corrupt leaders from Fatah.
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