Palestinian government discusses the security barrier plan
Palestine-Israel, Politics, 8/10/2004

The Palestinian government started yesterday a lengthy session to discuss details of implementing the security plan given by the police director Lt. Gen. Saeb al-Ajez last week.

The plan aims at deploying police forces in three cities in the West Bank with the aim to limit the state of security deterioration in the Palestinian areas.

On the other hand, the prime minister of the Israeli government Ariel Sharon denied he had given his consent to the deployment of armed forces from the Palestinian police. But Israeli sources loomed the possibility of approving carrying pistols for officers only.

Meantime, the representative of Hamas movement in Lebanon, Osama Hamdan, refused to deny or confirm reports that Egypt has reached an agreement with the movement over the arrangements concerning after the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

Hamdan said that the current dialogue in Cairo stressed the need not to give concessions for Israel for the coming Israeli withdrawal. He, on the other hand, explained that matters relating to after withdrawal are not settled yet.

However, the Egyptian daily al-Ahram said yesterday that Cairo has reached an agreement with Hamas over the arrangements on the safety of the Palestinian house in case of the Israeli withdrawal.

Meantime, Israeli sources said yesterday that the Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon froze a request to build more 1,000 residential units in the west Bank. Israel's radio said that Sharon refused the request of the ministry of housing to agree building 1300 housing units in the four largest settlements in the West Bank.

A high ranking Israeli official said that the defense minister green lighted the building of 200 houses in Ariel settlement, one of the largest settlement to the north of the West Bank.

In the battle field one elderly Palestinian called Fahemi Mahdi died during his return back from Egypt to Gaza across Rafah border crossing. Palestinian medical sources said that Mahdi ( 70 year old) died after he left the crossing and was among the thousands of Palestinians who were held at Rafah crossing.

Previous Stories:
  The meeting to arm the Palestinian police postponed   (8/9/2004)
  Israel agrees to arm the Palestinian police in the West Bank   (8/6/2004)
  Israeli forces kill one woman, al-Aqsa groups reconcile with the intelligence   (8/2/2004)

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