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Moussa Arafat talks to the media after he was been appointed the head of the National Security Forces for the West Bank and Gaza, at his office in Gaza City, in this July 17, 2004. (AP/File)
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| By Associated Press September 7, 2005 |
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Assailants with the Popular Resistance Committees, a violent group made up largely of former members of Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah movement, stormed the heavily guarded home of Gaza's former security chief before dawn Wednesday, killing him in a burst of gunfire while he was still in his pajamas and kidnapping one of his sons -- a brazen challenge to the Palestinian Authority just days before Israel is set to hand Gaza over to Palestinian rule.
The group said it killed Arafat, a cousin of the late Yasser Arafat, to punish him for alleged corruption after the Palestinian security forces had taken no action against him. "We have implemented God's law," a spokesman, Mohammed Abdel Al, told The Associated Press.
Abbas said he would track down the killers. With a clear claim of responsibility, his determination will quickly have to be put to the test.
The killing of Moussa Arafat, 65 heightened concerns that Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas and his weak security forces will not be able to restore order in the increasing lawless coastal strip where armed gangs control the streets.
Palestinian officials said they viewed the killing as an attack on the government. Abbas immediately convened a meeting of his top security officials and Palestinian security forces were put on high alert.
Late Tuesday, Palestinian security forces were unable to contain dozens of rock-throwing youths who charged toward abandoned Israeli settlements and climbed on an Israeli tank. A Palestinian teen was killed by Israeli troops firing to keep back the crowd.
In light of the chaos, the Israeli military sought permission to pull its last soldiers out of Gaza even before the Sept. 15 target date, Israeli security officials said. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and senior Cabinet ministers were to consider the issue in a meeting later Wednesday.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the killing of Arafat, who Abbas fired as chief Gaza security commander several months ago as part of government reforms. Arafat was the target of frequent corruption allegations and had many enemies. It was not clear whether the motive was personal or political.
In Wednesday's military-style attack on Arafat, gunmen overpowered dozens of bodyguards patrolling outside his four-story home in an upscale Gaza City neighborhood.
Residents said they heard more than two dozen loud explosions and bursts of gunfire, most from a single source, suggesting there was no gunbattle. The assailants also fired rocket-propelled grenades.
Arafat was still in his pajamas when he was killed in a hail of bullets. His oldest son, Manhal, a senior security official, was kidnapped, said Palestinian Cabinet Minister Sufian Abu Zeideh.
One of the bodyguards was shot in the leg.
Reporters touring the scene were not permitted inside the house. There were drops of blood in the sandy street outside, but the house's facade appeared undamaged, with no broken windows or bullet holes.
Abu Zeideh said the killing was an attack on the government. "He (Arafat) was a symbol of the authority," he told Israel Army Radio.
At dawn Wednesday, Abbas called an emergency meeting of his security commanders and Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia at his office in Gaza City. No announcements were made after the meeting.
Arafat was a founder of the ruling Fatah movement and was a senior official in the Fatah Revolutionary Council, a top policy-making body. The council had been scheduled to meet later Wednesday.
After he was fired as security chief, Arafat was given the considerably less influential job of military adviser to Abbas.
Arafat was a target of previous assassination attempts and always traveled in a heavily guarded convoy, using an armored limousine that once transported Yasser Arafat.
Before sundown Tuesday, dozens of young Palestinians marched on Neve Dekalim, once the largest Jewish settlement in Gaza. Palestinian police tried to stop them, but for the first time, they failed.
An Israeli tank approached, and some youths threw rocks at it while others stormed into the settlement. Soldiers opened fire, killing one and wounding three others, doctors said.
The Israeli military said soldiers opened fire after 40 to 50 youths ran into the settlement and others climbed on the tank. TV footage showed youths pelting the tank with rocks, then tearing down the fence around the settlement and racing inside.
Though Israel has removed its settlers and torn down houses in the settlements, the Israeli military retains control of the settlement areas until the formal handover, expected around Sept. 15. Synagogues and some military bases are still intact there.
Late Tuesday a rocket fired from Gaza exploded harmlessly in a field inside Israel.
Also, the Palestinian Cabinet issued a statement saying that after inspections, it was found that 70 percent of the greenhouses in the settlements are in good condition. The Cabinet called on Israel to allow Palestinian workers to return there next week.
Israel emptied all 21 settlements in Gaza and four in the northern West Bank two weeks ago according to Sharon's "disengagement" plan. Sharon said the pullout would strengthen Israel's security, reduce international pressure and solidify its hold on main West Bank settlements.
On Tuesday Israel said it approved construction of 117 new houses in the Ariel settlement in the heart of the West Bank. The United States has urged Israel not to expand West Bank settlements, in line with a construction freeze under the internationally backed "road map" peace plan.
Israeli officials said the 117 houses would be built in the center of Ariel and would not expand the settlement's territory. However, the Palestinians said any new construction in Ariel is problematic because of its location, deep in the West Bank.
"If they insist on keeping the settlement, they will destroy the prospect of a contiguous, viable Palestinian state," said Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat.
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