Army soldiers risked their lives Saturday in order to save the Fatah-aligned Hilles terrorist clan from the Hamas army, reserve IDF officer Yoel Tzur said Sunday. He termed the rescue effort "idiotic" and charged that the government ordered it as another measure to help Palestinian Authority (PA) chairman Mahmoud Abbas.

However, Abbas, after having asked Israel to accept the terrorists, reversed his stand and refused to allow all but about a dozen to remain in Judea and Samaria.