PM quits, adds to Gaza chaos

Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurie submitted his resignation to President Yasser Arafat today after complaining of unprecedented chaos i...

Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurie submitted his resignation to President Yasser Arafat today after complaining of unprecedented chaos in Gaza following kidnappings by gunmen demanding reforms.

Arafat refused to accept Qurie’s resignation and the Prime Minister convened the Cabinet to discuss his next move, Negotiation Affairs Minister Saeb Erekat said.

A sense of growing anarchy gripped the Gaza Strip, where militants calling for anti-corruption measures in the security services abducted four French aid workers and two Palestinian officials, including the area’s police chief, yesterday. All were released unharmed.

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Arafat, in an apparent response to the gunmen’s demands, fired police commander, Ghazi Al-Jabali, appointed a cousin, Maj Gen Mussa Arafat, as overall security chief for Gaza, and announced that its 12 security services would be combined into three. Facing growing criticism at home and abroad, Arafat has made similar unification pledges before but has taken no action.

	Meanwhile, Sharon says Israel must pull out to stay Jewish

			• JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon on Saturday warned that Israel needs to withdraw from the Gaza strip to remain ‘‘Jewish and democratic’’. He also said to students at Israel’s Academy of War on Friday that Israel cannot continue to ‘‘rule over a million Palestinians’’. — Reuters

Speaking to reporters in Ramallah before news of his resignation, Qurie said Gaza — where the Palestinian Authority declared a state of emergency — was in ‘‘an unprecedented state of chaos’’.

Some Palestinians worry lawlessness may only intensify as militant groups and security services jockey for position to fill the vacuum after any evacuation of Jewish settlements.

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Yesterday, Gaza security chief Rashid Abu Shbakand and general intelligence chief Amin Hindi submitted their resignations to Arafat, complaining of chaos in Gaza and the Authority’s failure to make reforms, an official said. —

EAM Jaishankar and US Secretary of State Rubio hold bilateral discussions in New York

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Indian Foreign Minister Jaishankar and US Senator Rubio met in New York to discuss the 25% tariff on Indian oil imposed by Trump. This was their first in-person meeting since the Quad Foreign Ministers' Meeting. India and the US also began talks for a trade agreement, with positive discussions during a recent visit by US trade officials to India.

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