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Abbas' new PM outlaws Hamas
Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas swore in a new cabinet on Sunday and immediately outlawed rival Hamas movements fighters after their bloody seizure of power in Gaza.Abbas actions have completely cut off Gaza from the outside world with Israeli troops adding to tensions by moving troops into the north of the Gaza Strip in what Deputy Defence Minister Ephraim Sneh said was a preventive action. After swearing in the new 12-member emergency cabinet headed by Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, Abbas swiftly declared Hamas illegal and issued a decree stating that all supporters of Hamas would be persecuted. Hamas, meanwhile, dismissed the new government as illegitimate. Palestinian officials are hoping that the creation of the emergency cabinet without Hamas will lead to the lifting of a Western aid boycott that was imposed after the new government took power in January 2006. Israel must reinforce the isolation of the Gaza Strip and not let anything pass except electricity and water, Israeli Infrastructure Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer told army radio, while a spokeswoman for Dor Alon, an Israeli fuel company, said fuel was now only being provided for Gaza power stations. Senior Abbas aide Saeb Erekat said he had asked Israel to allow fuel and raw materials to continue reaching Gaza. Israel, meanwhile, indicated its support of Abbas new regime and suggested it would release hundred million dollars in custom revenues owed to the Palestinians if the new cabinet cooperated with them. The global community welcomed the new government and urged rival factions to restore order in the region. Posted by: Fred 2007-06-18 |
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