Abbas orders security forces to scrap anti-Hamas rally

Thousands of members of the security forces had been expected to attend the rally in central Ramallah which would have seen demonstrators march from the parliament building to the grave of the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.

The security forces are still seething over comments by Hamas supremo Khaled Meshaal that effectively accused Abbas and his Fatah movement of plotting against the Hamas-led government which took power last month.

However a senior member of the security services said that Abbas had ordered that the rally be cancelled Sunday in order to avoid inflaming the situation.

"Abu Mazen (Abbas) ordered us to cancel the demonstration. He does not want to escalate the situation or involve the security forces in the political arena," the source told AFP.

Thousands of Fatah supporters across the West Bank and the Gaza Strip took to the streets on Saturday after the Damascus-based Meshaal charged that "a certain part of our people is plotting against us."

His comments came after Abbas vetoed a Hamas government decision to create a new special force of armed militants headed by a wanted radical.

The existing security forces are under the control of Abbas, and their ranks are dominated by supporters of Fatah which was heavily defeated by Hamas in a January parliamentary election.

Hamas has come under massive pressure since its government was sworn in by Abbas on March 29, with the United States and European Union cutting off direct aid to the Palestinian Authority over its failure to renounce violence and recognise Israel's right to exist.

The tensions between Fatah and Hamas have further destabilised the situation, something which both sides appear to have recognised after 30 people were wounded in clashes between rival supporters in Gaza City.

Fatah initially responded to Meshaal's comments by accusing him of trying to spark "a civil war"

But an emergency meeting between ministers of the Hamas-led government and Abbas's presidential office ended with a joint statement calling for calm and a pledge to "cooperate in order to consolidate national unity".

Abbas himself said during a stopover visit to Amman that "we prefer solving this question through the political channels, quietly.

"It is important for things not to further worsen on the Palestinian scene because it will not sustain a lot of tension," he added.

A statement from his office on Sunday flatly rejected an Israeli newspaper report that he was mulling the dismissal of the Hamas cabinet as "unfounded and totally untrue."

"The president is working on ending the financial and diplomatic boycotts on the Palestinian people and Authority, and is exerting much efforts to renew the peace process," said the statement.

"The president's position is for the parties to settle their legitimate differences through ongoing constructive dialogue, and to protect the higher national interests of the Palestinian people.

Israel, which refuses to deal with the Hamas government, is keeping a close eye on events but does not want to get sucked in itself.

In an assessment carried by public radio, the country's national security advisor Giora Eiland said that "the Palestinians want to avoid a civil war but both sides (Hamas and Fatah) are trying to lay down a marker."

"Israel mustn't get itself involved. We should only worry about our own security," he added.

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