Hamas, Fatah Feud Over Attacks on Facial Hair

The internecine fight between Hamas and Fatah has gotten ugly — at least for Palestinians who favor men with mustaches.

Hamas has resumed its policy of shaving the mustaches of rival Fatah members to humiliate them as a form of punishment, The Jerusalem Post reported.

Reports of such punishments surfaced in January, though Hamas denied it had resorted to close shaves in its struggle to assert dominance over Palestinian politics.

Fatah officials renewed their allegations Wednesday, according to the Jerusalem Post, which said Hamas, in turn, claimed followers' beards had been sabotaged by Fatah officials.

Nafez al-Namnam, a top Fatah operative in the Gaza Strip, appears to be the latest target of Hamas clippers. Namnam, 51, had sported a rather large mustache for more than three decades, but after being rounded up by Hamas in the aftermath of a bombing, he emerged from prison with a clean-shaven face, The Jerusalem Post reported.

In response, the Aksa Martyrs Brigades issued a statement strongly condemning the use of shaving as punishment.

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