June 17
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) - Jamal Abu Zayda waited 15 hours in the Erez crossing, a narrow tunnel with high walls, jostling with thieves, panicked women and crying babies before reaching Israel early Sunday.

By just getting out of the tunnel, he was one of the lucky ones.

A fluent Hebrew speaker with excellent relations with Israeli officials, Abu Zayda stood a good chance of getting out of Gaza, now ruled by Hamas militants. As a former senior security official from Fatah, he feared he'd been put on a Hamas death list.

Although there is a general amnesty for most Fatah fighters, who lost a five-day battle with Hamas militias, the Muslim group has vowed to kill those they believe have blood on their hands.

Many officials are still trapped inside the narrow concrete-walled corridor. Like Abu Zayda, they fear returning to Gaza, but Israel won't let them in.

Hundreds of others in the tunnel hope to get a break into the West Bank. They just don't want to live under Hamas rule.

"It's hell in there," Abu Zayda said from the Israeli side of the crossing.

Gaza's unknown soldier statue lay dumped in a square on Sunday, his head missing.
But strict interpretations of Islam forbid the display of statues, and many in Gaza fear that Hamas, now in control of the territory, will not stop extremist Muslims from imposing their views.

Militants tore down the statue on Sunday morning. The battered soldier was tossed in bustling Palestine Square.This was a symbol of peace. A soldier without a family.

There's no better barometer of panic in Gaza than the price of cigarettes.

Overnight, a packet of Marlboros shot up a third, from $3.75 to $5 - a small fortune for impoverished Gazans.
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