Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas said on Saturday he could not impose law and order in the Palestinian areas until Israel hands over control of West Bank cities and urged Israel to return to talks on their transfer. "We have no control on the ground," Abbas told a news conference in Ramallah. Militant groups have undermined recent attempts by Abbas to impose control over the armed groups, twice firing on Palestinian officials and police officers in the last week. Abbas said Palestinian forces would only be effective once Israeli troops leave. "Nobody can say we hold responsibility for the situation because we do not have a presence in the cities," he said.
Israel had promised to hand over five cities following the Feb.8 cease-fire declaration but suspended talks after a Palestinian suicide bomber killed five Israelis at a Tel Aviv night club last weekend. Abbas said the two sides must move ahead with transferring control of the cities. "The Israelis have stopped the talks and we call on them to resume the dialogue as soon as possible," Abbas said. But Israeli officials said there would be no more talks until the Palestinians find those behind the Tel Aviv bombing and accused Abbas of dragging his feet. "We are waiting to hear the results of the (Palestinian) investigation into the bombing that came from the very same city they want us to hand over," said Assaf Shariv, a spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. The bomber came from a village near the town of Tulkarem, one of the first places slated for transfer. "We are waiting to see what he (Abbas) will do, so far it is not a lot," Shariv said.