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| Israel-Palestine | |
| New force in Gaza adds to security uncertainty | |
| 2005-08-02 | |
GAZA, Aug 2 (Reuters) - Hundreds of members of the dominant Palestinian movement Fatah began training in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday for what they said would be the foundation of a popular army to help keep law and order after Israel withdraws this month. But a senior Palestinian official close to President Mahmoud Abbas, who has been under pressure at home and from abroad to slim down security forces and rein in unruly militant factions, said the group was acting on its own accord.
Men, mostly dressed in military uniforms, began their training at Khan Younis training camp in the southern Gaza Strip under the supervision of some police and other security forces. Mohammad Zua'rub, head of the Fatah training school in Khan Younis said the current training plan involved 350 men and would take 45 days. "We have been instructed to train those men to found the nucleus of the Popular Army," Zua'rub told Reuters. "The course will include military training, psychological, security and political teachings." The Interior Ministry did not have immediate comment on the group. It was far from clear how any new force might fit into the security structure and appeared certain to add to the current jumble of at least a dozen forces, many divided by deep rivalries and with a poor history of cooperation. The picture is further complicated by powerful militant factions waging an uprising against Israel since 2000. Zua'rub said the training had been ordered by Fatah leader Farouq Al-Qadoumi, who lives in exile and never accepted interim peace accords with the Israelis from the 1990s. But Qadoumi said he had nothing to do with any militia. "There is the police and the security forces, why should I form militias, and I don't have the money to pay for these militias," he told Reuters by telephone. A senior official in Fatah's leadership in the Gaza Strip who is close to Abbas also said the group had made no decision to form a popular army and accused unspecified people "trying to make personal gains" of being behind it. "The time now is to reinforce the Palestinian Authority and its security agencies and not to create new militias," said the official, who did not want to be named. But no apparent attempt was made to stop the training. Abbas has been under pressure from Israel and the United States to reorganise at least a dozen security forces and rein in militant groups, including groups within Fatah such as al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades. Palestinians also demand reforms to forces that are widely seen as ineffective and sometimes corrupt. An independent survey from a Washington-based think tank said last week that security forces were in such disarray they may not be able to fill the vacuum after Israel withdraws from the occupied Gaza Strip this year. The report criticised Israel for undermining Palestinian forces during the uprising as well as internal factors. | |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #2 "We have been instructed to train those men to found the nucleus of the Popular Army," Zua'rub told Reuters. Hmmm... The Palestinian Authority Popular Army, huh? Sounds like nepotism to me. |
| Posted by: mojo 2005-08-02 19:41 |
| #1 Zua'rub said the training had been ordered by Fatah leader Farouq Al-Qadoumi, who lives in exile and never accepted interim peace accords with the Israelis from the 1990s. But Qadoumi said he had nothing to do with any militia. "There is the police and the security forces, why should I form militias, and I don't have the money to pay for these militias," he told Reuters by telephone. I know some people who do. I'l bet you do too, don't you, Farouq? Looks like somebody wants to get back into the show. And fast. So what if he's turned out by Iran or Syria? |
| Posted by: tu3031 2005-08-02 16:12 |