Israeli aircraft struck at Gaza Strip militants and Palestinian police stormed government offices in the territory today as internal unrest brought new calls for a Palestinian election delay.
Amid the growing chaos, an Israeli paper said Prime Minister Ariel Sharon planned to one day abandon a US-peace "road map" because of the Palestinian failure to disarm militants and would seek Washington's approval to annex occupied West Bank land.
Struggling for control, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has resisted growing pressure to postpone the January 25 parliamentary vote from within his ruling Fatah movement -- which faces a strong challenge from Hamas Islamic militants.
Fatah's main militant wing, al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, joined calls for an election postponement today after Israeli aircraft destroyed a building in the Gaza Strip which the army said was used by the Brigades for preparing attacks.
Israel also targeted roads that it said were used by militants firing rockets into the Jewish state.
"How will there be an election with the continuation of the killings and destruction," the Brigades said in a statement in Gaza, calling on Abbas to form a national unity government that would prepare for a ballot at a later date.
Senior Fatah officials said the idea had already been rejected by Hamas. The Islamist faction, sworn to destroying Israel, has been buoyed ahead of the polls by Fatah's division between veteran politicians and a young guard.