GAZA STRIP: HAMAS SUPPORTERS RALLY AT YEHIYA AYYASH FUNERAL скачать в хорошем качестве

GAZA STRIP: HAMAS SUPPORTERS RALLY AT YEHIYA AYYASH FUNERAL

(6 Jan 1996) Natural Sound Thousands of Hamas supporters rallied at the funeral of Yehiya Ayyash, the man known as the Engineer and blamed for a spate of suicide bomb attacks in Israel. Ayyash - a hero to many Palestinians - belonged to the militant Islamic group Hamas and there was a huge outpouring of grief and anger from supporters at his funeral service in Gaza Saturday. There was also a huge rally in the West Bank town of Ramallah to mark his death. Hundreds of angry Hamas supporters gathered at a rally at the Islamic University in Gaza on the day Yehiya Ayyash was to be buried. Anti-Israeli feelings were shown by burning several Israeli flags. They later joined the thousands of mourners outside the Hamas-run mosque in Gaza for the funeral service. They had gathered to show their grief and their respect for the man who was known as the Engineer. Ayyash was believed to be the mastermind behind a series of Palestinian suicide bombings that began in April of 1994 and killed 70 Israelis. He died Friday when a booby-trapped mobile phone exploded in his hands, Palestinian officials said. Many Hamas supporters suspect Israel of being behind his death. Shin Bet , Israel's internal security agency, made the capture of Ayyash their top priority - dead or alive. But he was a hero to many Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza and a general strike has been declared for three days in Gaza in his memory. Emotions ran high as mourners tried to force a way through the crowd for the funeral procession. Once the way was clear the traditional firing off guns marked the passing of a man they now consider a martyr. Ayyash's mother was overcome at one stage during the procession and had to sit down on the crowded platform to recover. But his father, Abdul-Latif, continued to salute the crowd and led them in chanting religious slogans. Ayyash's wife and young sons did not join the funeral procession so as to avoid the crush of the crowd. Angry Hamas supporters have vowed to revenge the death of Ayyash and some have called for a jihad, or holy war against the Jewish state. These same sentiments were expressed at a rally in the West Bank town of Ramallah. Thousands attended the rally to show their anger over Ayyash's death. His death also affected those at all levels of Palestinian society. Palestinian Liberation Organisation leader Yasser Arafat nearly cancelled a trip to Bethlehem for the Orthodox Christmas celebrations. But he decided to go ahead with the visit amidst very tight security. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...