Families of victims killed in Fatah-Hamas struggle seek revenge: “We are a tribal society, in which a murderer is killed”
Headline: "Families of victims of the [Fatah-Hamas] rift insist on 'revenge' – will this subvert the reconciliation?"
"Family members of the victims who died in the course of the struggle between Fatah and Hamas have said that they want to 'take revenge' on their children's murderers – a stance which may represent a further obstacle threatening the reconciliation between the two movements, which has not yet been completed. Hajj Musa (70), father of Bahaa Abu Jarrad, who was secretary of the Fatah movement in the Northern Gaza district and was killed shortly after Hamas took over Gaza, said that this reconciliation will not 'last if we do not obtain the rights of our children, and it will be stained with blood.' The old man added: 'Hamas ambushed and murdered my son in cold blood; now they want to reconcile me with those who murdered my son. How can that be imaginable? [The angel] Gabriel himself cannot reconcile me with those who murdered my son.' He added with determination, 'They will not deceive us… I shall not agree to a ransom, nor to [monetary] compensation. All that I want from the next government is punishment for my son's murderers.' … Mana, widow of Sheikh Muhammad Al-Rafati, who belonged to Hamas and was likewise killed during the struggle between the two movements, insists on revenge upon the murderers of her husband. She said, 'The most important thing is the punishment, because whoever killed my husband has, from today, no right to live a normal life; he must pay the price for his actions.'
Her eldest son, Hamza (19), interrupted her vehemently, saying: 'I will not back down for the sake of reconciliation. We were victims in the struggle between Hamas and Fatah, and we shall not agree to be victims of a crime that was perpetrated, even when [afterwards] there is reconciliation.'
The Hamas government has sentenced to death three men whom it convicted of the murder of Sheikh Al-Rafati at the end of last year, but the family fears that the sentences will not be carried out following the reconciliation. Spokesman for the dismissed Hamas government, Taher Al-Nunu, did not rule out this possibility. Al-Nunu said, 'The subject of the reconciliation, the killing, and the blood is all subject to the agreed-upon Social Reconciliation Committee. If the committee approves the execution of the sentence, it will be carried out; if it does not approve, it will not be carried out.'
In response to the question of whether he would avenge his father, Hamza Al-Rafati said: 'Of course I will.' He added, 'If I see the person who carried out the crime in the street, I won't be able to restrain myself so long as I see him breathing. I'll take from him what is my right, because no one can look at his father's murderer alive.' …
Um Ahmad, who refused to be identified, but who lost [both] her husband and his brother, both of whom belonged to Fatah, said: 'We are a tribal society, in which a murderer is killed.' She wondered, 'How can we walk with our heads upright among people if we don't carry out revenge for our children and for our own honor?"
"Family members of the victims who died in the course of the struggle between Fatah and Hamas have said that they want to 'take revenge' on their children's murderers – a stance which may represent a further obstacle threatening the reconciliation between the two movements, which has not yet been completed. Hajj Musa (70), father of Bahaa Abu Jarrad, who was secretary of the Fatah movement in the Northern Gaza district and was killed shortly after Hamas took over Gaza, said that this reconciliation will not 'last if we do not obtain the rights of our children, and it will be stained with blood.' The old man added: 'Hamas ambushed and murdered my son in cold blood; now they want to reconcile me with those who murdered my son. How can that be imaginable? [The angel] Gabriel himself cannot reconcile me with those who murdered my son.' He added with determination, 'They will not deceive us… I shall not agree to a ransom, nor to [monetary] compensation. All that I want from the next government is punishment for my son's murderers.' … Mana, widow of Sheikh Muhammad Al-Rafati, who belonged to Hamas and was likewise killed during the struggle between the two movements, insists on revenge upon the murderers of her husband. She said, 'The most important thing is the punishment, because whoever killed my husband has, from today, no right to live a normal life; he must pay the price for his actions.'
Her eldest son, Hamza (19), interrupted her vehemently, saying: 'I will not back down for the sake of reconciliation. We were victims in the struggle between Hamas and Fatah, and we shall not agree to be victims of a crime that was perpetrated, even when [afterwards] there is reconciliation.'
The Hamas government has sentenced to death three men whom it convicted of the murder of Sheikh Al-Rafati at the end of last year, but the family fears that the sentences will not be carried out following the reconciliation. Spokesman for the dismissed Hamas government, Taher Al-Nunu, did not rule out this possibility. Al-Nunu said, 'The subject of the reconciliation, the killing, and the blood is all subject to the agreed-upon Social Reconciliation Committee. If the committee approves the execution of the sentence, it will be carried out; if it does not approve, it will not be carried out.'
In response to the question of whether he would avenge his father, Hamza Al-Rafati said: 'Of course I will.' He added, 'If I see the person who carried out the crime in the street, I won't be able to restrain myself so long as I see him breathing. I'll take from him what is my right, because no one can look at his father's murderer alive.' …
Um Ahmad, who refused to be identified, but who lost [both] her husband and his brother, both of whom belonged to Fatah, said: 'We are a tribal society, in which a murderer is killed.' She wondered, 'How can we walk with our heads upright among people if we don't carry out revenge for our children and for our own honor?"