Battle of Gaza (2007)
| Battle of Gaza | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Fatah–Hamas conflict | |||||||||
Map of the Gaza Strip | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
| Hamas |
| ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
|
Ismail Haniyeh Khaled Mashal |
Mahmoud Abbas Mohammed Dahlan Mohammed Sweirki † | ||||||||
| Units involved | |||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| 6,000 fighters | 3,500 fighters | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
|
120 combatants 39 civilians 2 UNRWA personnel | |||||||||
The Battle of Gaza, also known as the Gaza civil war, was a brief civil war between Fatah and Hamas that took place in the Gaza Strip from 10 to 15 June 2007. It was a prominent event in the Fatah–Hamas conflict, centered on the struggle for power after Fatah lost the 2006 Palestinian legislative election. The battle resulted in the dissolution of the unity government and the de facto division of the Palestinian territories into two entities: the West Bank governed by the Palestinian National Authority (PNA), and the Gaza Strip governed by Hamas. Hamas fighters took control of the Gaza Strip, while Fatah officials were either taken as prisoners, executed, or expelled. The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights reported that at least 161 people were killed and more than 700 were wounded during the fighting.