Never having to say you’ve quit
A grim-looking Qurei told reporters in Ramallah that the kidnappings were a “true and unprecedented disaster.” He then met with members of the Palestinian Legislative Council and told them about his decision to quit.
Nabil Abu Rudeineh, Arafat’s spokesman, announced that the PA chairman had turned down the resignation. “We have full confidence in Abu Ala (Qurei) and his cabinet and President Arafat will not accept the resignation,” he said.
The promise of future reforms
The leader of the Fatah gang who kidnapped Jabali condemned Arafat’s decision to give his cousin a security role.
“With all due respect to President Arafat, the Palestinian Authority cannot continue to be monopolized by (Arafat) and his relatives,” said Abu Iyad, the leader of Fatah’s Jenin Martyrs Brigades. “We have our own ways to show our opposition to this move.”
The integrity of the police forces
PA security sources said the kidnappers were disgruntled policemen who had been fired from their jobs
And most importantly, blaming the usual suspects
Musa Arafat enjoys the support of the secretary-general of Fatah in the Gaza Strip, Ahmed Khals, who said Saturday that the kidnappings and the demonstrations in Gaza “are an attempt to create an alternative leadership to Yasser Arafat with the backing of Israeli elements.”
But there are some positives for the PLO Arabs. For a start, this may not degenerate into civil war.
But sources close to Dahlan also said the confrontations will not deteriorate into civil war in the streets but will continue to take the form of kidnappings and possible assassinations.
And they finally got their state.
As a result, the PA government declared a state of emergency.
Democracy in the PLO-Arab controlled areas means..
Making yourself heard
The drama in the Gaza Strip started around midday Friday when dozens of Fatah gunmen abducted Jabali after ambushing his vehicle south of Gaza City.
Two of Jabali’s bodyguards were moderately wounded in the attack. The gunmen took the 63-year-old Jabali to the nearby Al-Bureij refugee camp, where they questioned him about his involvement in the theft of public funds and sexual abuse of women.
The kidnappers then paraded Jabali in the streets of the camp, forcing him to admit publicly to raping a number of women and stealing more than $20 million.
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On Friday night, masked Fatah gunmen kidnapped four French citizens drinking coffee at a cafe in Khan Yunis and held them at the offices of the Red Crescent Society. Hours later, the four – two men and two women – were released unharmed.
The gunmen announced that they decided to kidnap the French citizens to protest against United Nations Middle East envoy Terje Roed-Larsen’s criticism of Arafat last week and the failure of the PA to compensate Palestinians whose homes were destroyed by the IDF in Khan Yunis.
Appointing new, fresh leaders
Thousands of angry Palestinians have been demonstrating in Gaza against Arafat, over his decision to nominate his nephew Mussa Arafat, widely regarded as both incompetent and corrupt, as head of PA security forces in Gaza.
