Gazans returning through Rafah crossing describe checks by Palestinian militia

One Palestinian woman said members of the Israel-linked militia searched them and their belongings at an Israeli checkpoint inside Gaza.

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Lamia Rabia, who was travelling with her children, said they were escorted by Israeli forces from the border to a nearby checkpoint where members of the Abu Shabab militia, also known as the Popular Forces, searched them and their belongings.

"There was a woman from the Abu Shabab group who conducted the searches on the women," she told the BBC.

"They didn't speak with us, they only searched us and then we went to the Israelis, who questioned us.

"The Israelis and the Abu Shabab group were together at the same point."

The BBC asked the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) about these claims and whether they were coordinating with a local militia group in this way - they said they were unable to comment.

Israel's Shin Bet internal security agency has also been approached for comment, but the BBC has not received a response so far.

The Abu Shabab militia is an anti-Hamas group that receives support and weapons from Israel, and operates in the Rafah area under Israeli military control.

Ghassan al-Dheini, head of the militia, was quoted in Israeli media on Monday as saying his unit would play "an important security role regarding entry and exit through the Rafah crossing".

Asked how they could be sure the checks were carried out by Abu Shabab, one of the women the BBC spoke to said they had introduced themselves.

The BBC has not been able to reach the militia leaders to confirm their involvement directly.

One of the women, who the BBC is not naming in order to protect her identity, said that the group told her they would help her travel to Europe if she co-operated.

She also said she was mistreated by the militia, alleging that she was beaten and strip-searched along with three other women, and that they had b

Source: BBC

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