Gunmen target Hamas officials

Gunmen targeted three senior Hamas officials in the West Bank, kidnapping one, torching the car of a second and shooting in the air as a third emerged from a mosque, officials said today.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility. However, the attacks on Hamas officials in the West Bank came a day after four supporters of the rival Fatah group were killed in factional fighting in the Gaza Strip. Gaza is a Hamas stronghold, while Fatah dominates in the West Bank.

Late yesterday, gunmen stormed the home of deputy health minister Bashar Karmi in the West Bank town of El Bireh and seized him. Arab satellite TV stations reported that he was released this morning, but the report could not immediately be confirmed independently.

In the West Bank town of Jenin, assailants torched the car of prisoner affairs minister Wasfi Kabaha of Hamas, security officials said. It was the third attack on a car owned by Kabaha.

In the village of Jabaa, gunmen fired in the air as the local prayer leader and senior Hamas activist, Nasser Al Awna, emerged from the mosque. He was not harmed.