Palestinian security forces storm pro-Hamas rally
March 30, 1996
Web posted at: 10:30 p.m. EST (0330 GMT)NABLUS, West Bank (CNN) -- Palestinian security forces burst into a rally at a West Bank university Saturday where students were protesting the arrest of 65 students accused of pro-Hamas activities.
Nearly 200 police took over the campus, about 10 entering the student union at An-Najah University to stop the rally. They shot bullets in the air and threw tear gas into the student union as students overturned chairs and tables.
At least five students were arrested in the protest, including some members of An-Najah's student council. The university's student government is dominated by a militant Muslim group.
Four students were hospitalized for tear gas inhalation.
The school's board of trustees condemned the actions of the security force, demanding that PLO chief Yasser Arafat form a committee to investigate the incident. They also said the school would close down for three days.
Hamas claimed responsibility for four suicide bombings in Israel in February and March which killed 62 people. Since then, the Palestinian Authority has cracked down hard on Hamas activities, arresting hundreds of suspected Islamic militants in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
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