Abbas fires Gaza commanders after attacks

Ha'aretz ^ | February 10, 2005 | Amos Harel

[E Rocc]

Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas fired his top Gaza security commanders after militants launched a massive shelling attack on Israeli targets around the Strip, Palestinian security officials said late Thursday afternoon.

PA officials said Abbas dismissed Brigadier General Abdel Razek al-Majaydeh, chief of public security, police chief Saeb al-Ajed and three other senior commanders. Also, several lower-ranking officers lost their jobs.

Palestinian Cabinet Secretary Hassan Abu Libdeh said Abbas took "punitive measures against officers who did not undertake their responsibilities, which led to the latest developments in Gaza," dismissing several commanders and accepting the resignations of others.

"These are very dangerous developments, and they violate the legitimacy of the Palestinian Authority," Abu Libdeh said. "No one can continue with these violations."

[E Rocc]

Some actions. A good start I would say.

-Eric

[E Rocc]

Ping

[pissant]

Is the Pali civil war about to start??

[pabianice]

So much for another Arab promise.

[Juan Medén]

WOW! This is a new day!

[E Rocc]

"Is the Pali civil war about to start??"

Hamas is certainly doing its damndest to sabotage the Abbas-Sharon rapproachment. It could be.

-Eric

[thoughtomator]

Still mere words. Shuffling the deck chairs on the PSS Titanic isn't going to change a thing. Where is Abbas going to find replacements for the fired people, who will actually act to stop attacks against Israel?

[Tarpaulin]

If Abbas keeps this up, I'll be able to count my doubts about him on my fingers. This is a very good sign.

In other good news: Arafat is still dead!

[txkev]

Hmmmm, could it be that the PA may be serious this time? I won't be convinced until they start arresting and/or killing the terrorists. It is a small step, however.

[SueRae]

A good start. Response within 24 hours. I hope Abbas can survive Hamas. Fingers crossed.

[taxcontrol]

Ok, in light of these developments, I will need to reassess my opinion of Abbas. Improvements come in small steps. Firing the top people is a show of strength that I did not think Abbas had in him.

[theDentist]

Fired in a wink of an eye, most likely.

[TigerTale]

So much for another Arab promise.

Everyone knew there would be another attack, as the militants stated bluntly that they would not be bound by the ceasefire negotiated with Israel. We have no reason to assume that Abbas is responsible for the misconduct of the militants.

The question is, how will Abbas respond to this challenge to his authority? Like all governments, the PA must establish--in the words of George Will--a monopoly on the use of violence. They do not yet have such a monopoly.

[conservativecorner]

This may turn out to be interesting after all. I had no hope for any real reform with Abbas running the show, but I do see a glimmer of hope in his actions. If he's willing to work in cooperation with Israel on security matters, it dramatically changes the dynamics into a real paradigm shift for the middle east

[nikos1121]

"If Abbas keeps this up, I'll be able to count my doubts about him on my fingers. This is a very good sign.

In other good news: Arafat is still dead!"

I think this is both good and bad. If he doesn't have the support of his security leutenants they'll cut him down. If they do that, then we're back to square one.

Abbas deserves the support of everyone, as he clearly is allot braver and more committed that he appeared to be when Arafat was alive.

nikos

[SlowBoat407]

First step is to draw clear lines between the Palestinians who want peace (and I do believe there are some) and those who want nothing but war with Israel. It looks like Abbas has drawn the line and now people have to decide which side they are on. Some tough choices lie ahead.

[Ramcat]

Pray for Peace.

[E Rocc]

Abbas deserves the support of everyone, as he clearly is allot braver and more committed that he appeared to be when Arafat was alive.

He has some pretty serious regional backup too.

-Eric

[Spok]

Abbas' days are numbered.

[johnnycap]

You are right. Unfortunately, my bet is he ends up dead. My hope is that he worked out a deal where he calls in either the US or UN forces to replace PA security forces if they can't do the job. Then, Hammas is on the run. I hope Sharon and Abbas have really trustworthy body guards because it will take a little more than personal courage to get this peace process over the finish line.