Middle East: Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas ordered a crackdown yesterday on Ramallah militants who defied demands that they lay down their arms under peace moves he had agreed with Israel.
Mr Abbas took a tougher line after half a dozen gunmen from his own ruling Fatah faction fired at his Ramallah compound on Wednesday night while he was inside and then went on a rampage in the West Bank city, damaging several restaurants and shops. The militants, among 26 fighters holed up at the battered presidential headquarters since Yasser Arafat gave them refuge at the height of a 4½-year-old uprising, were then barred from the compound, a Palestinian official said.
In another sign of lawlessness plaguing the Palestinian territories, an angry crowd burned down tents used as offices by Palestinian police in the West Bank town of Tulkarm early yesterday after police shot and wounded three suspects.
"Abbas has issued an order to prevent any security violations and harm to citizens' property," a spokesman said. "Security units have been deployed to prevent further attacks."
It was not clear to what extent Mr Abbas, who has used dialogue instead of confrontation in his dealings with anti-Israeli militants, was ready to act and whether the matter would extend beyond Ramallah, the West Bank's political and commercial hub.
Mr Abbas, elected in January after Mr Arafat's death, is struggling to impose law and order and reform corruption-tainted security forces after reaching a ceasefire deal with Israel last month.