Abducted Fatah and Hamas men freed - sources

GAZA, Dec 18 (Reuters) Fatah and Hamas members abducted by gunmen were freed late in the day as part of deal between the two sides, sources in the two groups said.

They said eight Fatah activists and four Hamas members, including senior official Emad Deeb, had been released and handed over to third-party mediators.

Hamas gunmen abducted Sufian Abu Zaida, a senior official from Abbas's Fatah faction and a former cabinet minister, in Gaza City but freed him an hour later.

The abduction followed a clash between the two sides in which a Fatah activist was killed.

Hamas and Fatah sources said Abu Zaida had been freed earlier at the behest of Damascus-based exiled Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal.

Tension between Hamas and Fatah has intensified since Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah said on Saturday that he was calling for new elections, a move designed to end a nine-month political impasse under the Hamas-led government.

Gunmen from the rival factions clashed for most of the day yesterday. Two people were killed and about 20 were wounded before a tentative ceasefire was struck.

REUTERS PKS BST0359