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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Gaza crowds for Hamas anniversary | Gaza crowds for Hamas anniversary |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Tens of thousands of Hamas supporters are gathering in a Gaza City stadium to celebrate the 21st anniversary of the militant group's founding. | Tens of thousands of Hamas supporters are gathering in a Gaza City stadium to celebrate the 21st anniversary of the militant group's founding. |
| The mass rally - with its sea of green flags - is being seen as a show of strength by Hamas, which has ruled Gaza since a violent takeover in June 2007. | |
| In Cairo Israeli and Egyptian officials were to meet in a bid to renew a six-month-old Gaza ceasefire with Hamas. | In Cairo Israeli and Egyptian officials were to meet in a bid to renew a six-month-old Gaza ceasefire with Hamas. |
| The five-month truce between the sides has been shaken by recent violence. | The five-month truce between the sides has been shaken by recent violence. |
| 'Stone-throwing to guns' | 'Stone-throwing to guns' |
| In Gaza City, busloads of demonstrators flooded into the city from across the territory. | In Gaza City, busloads of demonstrators flooded into the city from across the territory. |
| Crowds flocked to the streets, many wearing the green of Hamas and waving flags in support of the group. | |
| The Associated Press said the crowds filled an arena in Gaza City which can accommodate 150,000 people. | |
| Among the performances was a sketch mocking the captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, seized by militants close to the Gaza Strip in 2006, AP reported. | |
| In a statement on its website, one of Hamas' senior officials, Mahmoud Zahar, paid tribute to the organisation. | |
| "Hamas has gone from stone-throwing to guns and rockets, from a support base of a few thousand people to a backing of millions in Arab countries and around the world," he said. | |
| Reports said senior Hamas leaders were expected to lay out the future of the Egyptian-mediated truce and Hamas's relations with rival Palestinian group Fatah, which rules the West Bank. | Reports said senior Hamas leaders were expected to lay out the future of the Egyptian-mediated truce and Hamas's relations with rival Palestinian group Fatah, which rules the West Bank. |
| Hamas accuses Israel of failing to honour its side of the truce, under which it agreed to ease its blockade of Gaza. | Hamas accuses Israel of failing to honour its side of the truce, under which it agreed to ease its blockade of Gaza. |
| Israel says Hamas has failed to stop militant groups from launching rockets and mortar rounds on its towns. | Israel says Hamas has failed to stop militant groups from launching rockets and mortar rounds on its towns. |