Islamic militant walks free

Attempts by Palestinian security forces to arrest a leading Islamic militant collapsed into dangerous farce as he walked free, escorted by a member of Yasser Arafat's own Fatah movement.

The tense standoff between several armed factions in a Gaza City tower block last night illustrated the Palestinian leader's fast slackening grip on power over his own people, which his opponents said could lead to a coup.

Intelligence officers were barred from the studios of the Ramattan media group when they arrived to arrest Mohammed al Hindi, a leading member of Islamic Jihad. He had been preparing to give a TV interview.

While Mr Arafat's secret policemen negotiated to enter the studios, members of Fatah rushed to the aid of their comrade from the more extreme Islamic Jihad movement, which has been responsible for the killing of scores of Israelis over the last 14 months. On Sunday a gunman from Islamic Jihad, which is banned in Britain and America, killed two Jewish teenagers and injured 46 other Israelis.

Mr Arafat has been under pressure from Israel, the US and Britain, to round up terrorists behind killings during the Al Aqsa Intifada.

Israel has made the arrests a precondition of a return to any negotiations, while simultaneously pursuing a policy of assassinating terrorist suspects.

Mr Arafat's attempts to round up militants has resulted in a political backlash which many Palestinians have warned could explode into civil war.