Deadly gunbattle erupts near Palestinian parliament.

GAZA CITY (AFP) - One Jordanian was killed and at least seven Palestinians wounded as rising tensions between the rival Hamas and Fatah factions erupted into heavy fighting near the parliament in Gaza.

A driver at the Jordanian representation was killed in the running gunbattle close to the Legislative Council building, pitting police and preventative security against a new paramilitary force deployed by the Hamas-led government.

Heavy explosions pounded the area, as bullets reverberated off walls, ambulences screeched through the streets and clouds of acrid smoke filled the air. The dead man was named as 55-year-old Khaled Hassan al-Radaida.

Hamas supporters used at least one rocket-propelled grenade against police, which is dominated by the former ruling Fatah party loyal to Palestinian Authority president Mahmud Abbas, a security source on the spot said.

A vehicle parked outside parliament burst into flames after apparently being struck by a hand grenade, while Hamas gunmen hunkered down inside an empty extension under construction within the parliament compound.