Sunday's fighting began with the killing of an al-Aqsa brigade leader

Two people are reported to have been killed and at least 10 wounded as Fatah and Hamas gunmen exchanged fire.

Egyptian mediators brokered a truce late o­n Sunday after five people were killed and 18 injured.

It was the worst day of violence in Gaza since Hamas and Fatah agreed in February to form a unity government.

Egyptian mediators brokered an agreement between the factions to pull their armed men off the streets, dismantle roadblocks and return a number of hostages taken o­n Sunday.

The truce was intended to come into effect at 0100 Monday (2200 GMT Sunday) but within hours fighting had broken out with both sides claiming the other had attacked its members.

Factional clashes

Sunday's violence began when a leader of the Fatah-linked al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades was ambushed and shot dead.

The death of Baha Abu Jarab sparked a series of factional clashes.

His driver also died in the ambush, which the Brigades blamed o­n the armed wing of Hamas.

Hamas denied the claim, but two Palestinians reportedly linked to Hamas were later killed near a mosque in Gaza City, and nine more people were injured.

Most of those wounded were members of Hamas, medical sources told AFP news agency.

Not o­nly the future of the government, but the future of all the Palestinian people will be endangered if these bloody acts continue Mustafa Barghouti Palestinian Information Minister

Later, three people were wounded during Abu Jarab's funeral procession in Jabaliya, witnesses said.

Back in Gaza City, masked gunmen abducted a Hamas religious scholar as he left a mosque, his family and Hamas officials said.

Ali Sharif, a teacher at the Islamic University in his 70s, was taken outside his home in Sabra neighbourhood.

Hamas later issued a statement saying that 70 of its members had been abducted, the BBC's Aleem Maqbool reports from Ramallah in the West Bank.

But Egyptian officials reached a deal to pull gunmen off the streets and ease tensions.

Security operation

Sunday's fighting was the worst outbreak of violence since a February ceasefire between the rival factions, who established a unity government in March.

"Not o­nly the future of the government, but the future of all the Palestinian people will be endangered if these bloody acts continue," he said.

Last week, Hamas and Fatah launched a major security operation to crack down o­n violence and lawlessness in Gaza.

As many as 3,000 police were reported to have taken part in the initial operations.

Officials said that troops loyal to both Fatah and Hamas would now wear the same police uniform and answer to the interior ministry, which has been placed under the control of Hani Qawasmi, a political independent in the coalition government.

Up to 400 people have died in clashes between Palestinian factions since the Islamist Hamas won last year's parliamentary elections.