The militant wing of Hamas, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, said earlier that they had captured the chief of the presidential guard and other senior commanders in Gaza.
Speaking at a press conference in Gaza City, where Hamas seized the presidential compound and key security strongholds on Thursday, Hamas spokesman Abu Obeideh said: "On this great day we declare an amnesty for all those we captured, and for those who were involved in torture and looting and anarchy."
After the toppling of local forces loyal to Western-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, eyewitnesses have reported mass turmoil in Gaza City, with civilians and militants looting property from the presidential compound.
Abbas earlier declared a state of emergency and dissolved the government, saying he would form a new cabinet, replacing the governing coalition in which power has been shared since March by the two rival groups. But deposed Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas said the government would ignore the decision, which he called "hasty," and blamed Fatah for provoking the Islamists.
More than 30 people died in Thursday's battles, during which Hamas fighters, better armed and more organized than their Fatah opponents, gained a series of decisive victories in Gaza. In the last six days, at least 100 have died in Gaza shootouts.
The latest developments in Gaza have provoked international alarm, with the possibility of violence spreading to the West Bank, and the strong likelihood that the Palestinian territories will undergo a permanent split, into an isolated Hamas-led Islamic state in Gaza and a Fatah-led state in the West Bank, with Western backing.
Egypt racked up security on its short border with Gaza, deploying police and armored vehicles. Israel pledged not to allow the violence to spill over onto its territory, but has not hinted at military intervention in Gaza. U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice called on Abbas to back "moderates" in the region, and the European Union has suspended the remaining aid projects in Gaza, most of which had already been frozen following Hamas' election victory last year.
However, sacked premier Haniyeh gave reassurances that Hamas would maintain law and order in Gaza, "firmly and decisively," and rejected unilateral decisions on the part of the president, who now has no control over the war-torn region.
"We came to power through elections, and have the support of 96% of the Palestinian people. No unilateral decisions can be made here. We will respect democracy and the political system... The government will continue its work, and we will not desert our people," Ismail Haniyeh said in a live Palestinian TV broadcast.
A Hamas spokesman said on local radio earlier: "We are telling our people that the past era is over, and will not return. The era of justice and Islamic rule has come."
