The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Friday denied media reports that it has sent weapons and ammunition to the Gaza Strip, terming the news as "false and baseless", the Emirates News Agency (WAM) reported.

The UAE sent only bullet-proof vests, vehicles and tents for the Palestinian presidential guard on request of the Palestinian presidency, a Foreign Ministry source was quoted as saying.

The source said that the dispatched goods are equipment and not weapons. "They were not sent to a certain faction but to the highest authority that represents all Palestinian people."

He, meanwhile, called on all Palestinian parties in the Gaza Strip to stop fighting and focus their efforts for resuming dialogue and strengthening national unity.

The governing Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) and its rival Fatah movement led by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas have been locking in deep power struggle.

Their current round of violence began with a fierce midnight shootout at Gaza's Islamic University and the two days of infighting have left at least 20 people dead and more than 220 others wounded, the fiercest infighting seen in Gaza since Hamas came to power one year ago.

Source: Xinhua