Hamas starts paying thousands of civil servants

More than 10,000 Palestinian civil servants loyal to Hamas have began receiving their salaries, a union official said on Saturday. Alla Al-Batta, head of the Hamas-run Palestinian public employees union, said on local news radio that the government began paying the salaries of around 10,000 civil servants, including thousands of men who work for the Executive Force, a Hamas-loyal militia which polices the Gaza Strip.