Article

2004-07-16 Israel-Palestine

Paleos kidnap Paleo Gaza Police Chief - Civil War begins in earnest?

A few hours after militants abducted him, the police chief of Gaza and the West Bank was freed Friday, Palestinian Authority officials said. Officials said Ghazi Jabali was released after negotiations with the kidnappers. Witnesses said Jabali was seen leaving the Bureij refugee camp in an ambulance that headed toward a Gaza hospital for a medical examination. Officials declined to say what the conditions of his release were.

In phone calls to Palestinian news organizations, a group called the Jenin Brigades, with links to Fatah and the Popular Resistance Committee, had claimed responsibility for the kidnapping. A spokesman for the Jenin Brigades told CNN the group was assured that Jabali would be removed from his post within 72 hours and that he would be investigated for suspected embezzlement and corruption. Palestinian Authority officials did not comment on the statement.

The Popular Resistance Committee is a coalition of militant groups, including Islamic Jihad, Hamas, Fatah and others. Fatah acts as the political organization of Palestinian President Yasser Arafat and was formed by him in 1965. Palestinian security officials said Jabali was traveling in a convoy from Nusseirat refugee camp to Gaza City when gunmen stopped him. In ensuing clashes, one of his bodyguards was wounded, officials said. Witnesses said Mahmoud Nashabat, the head of the Jenin Brigades, had paraded Jabali through the Bureij camp on foot, while the entrance to the camp was blocked to police and journalists.

A Jenin Brigades spokesman, Abu Iyad, told Arabic news network al-Jazeera that the group would go after others in the Palestinian Authority suspected of corruption and told Arafat and other officials of their concerns and demands. He said the move was not a challenge to Arafat's authority. "We are a part of the Fatah movement," Iyad said. "Fatah is for reform and that's our objective. Fighting corruption is an important part of our revolutionary activity. We gave the Palestinian Authority the chance to eradicate corruption, but it failed in this respect." It is not known if Palestinian infighting was linked to the abduction.

What the hell were you just describing? Who the hell writes this stuff?

Posted by VAMark 2004-07-16 10:29|| || Front Page|| [11151 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 Released - see Sky

Posted by Howard UK 2004-07-16 11:11:40 AM|| 2004-07-16 11:11:40 AM|| Front Page Top

#2 are his bodyguards dead? They exchange gunfire with the attackers yet he's whisked out of the car? More to this story, I bet

Posted by Frank G 2004-07-16 11:17:21 AM|| 2004-07-16 11:17:21 AM|| Front Page Top

#3 whats the relationship of Jabali to Dahlan - anybody know?

Posted by Liberalhawk 2004-07-16 11:31:23 AM|| 2004-07-16 11:31:23 AM|| Front Page Top

#4 Haaretz

The official said Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat had agreed to the demands of the kidnappers, from the Jenin Martyrs Brigades, part of Arafat's Fatah faction, to dismiss Jabali and put him on trial for suspected corruption.

Palestinian militants seized Jabali earlier Friday after ambushing his convoy and taking him to an unknown location, Palestinian security sources said.

Two of Jabali's bodyguards were wounded and the rear window and tires of a jeep blown out during what a Palestinian security man at the scene said had been a volley of bullets from more than 10 gunmen on Gaza's coastal road.

"We gave three years to the Palestinian Authority to carry out reforms. We waited a long time. But they didn't do anything. We are doing this in our way," Abu Iyad, a spokesman for the brigades, said on Al-Jazeera satellite television. "Ghazi Jabali was kidnapped to hold him accountable for his mistakes against our people."

From the above it sounds like Jabali was corrupt, and was an Arafat loyalist (redundant?) and no overt Dahlan involvement. Not so much civil war, with all factions battling it out, as a struggle WITHIN Fatah.

Posted by Liberalhawk 2004-07-16 11:39:11 AM|| 2004-07-16 11:39:11 AM|| Front Page Top

#5 AP: The officials said the abduction was related to an internal feud between Jabali and the Palestinian Popular Resistance Committee, which was pressing for more jobs in the police force for its members. As head of the police forces, Jabali has been identified as Arafat's "enforcer," known for cracking down on dissenters. Jabali has made many enemies among Palestinians who see him as corrupt, but he's earned a reputation for tough leadership.
The resistance committee is a grouping of independent fighters who left established militant groups or security forces. It has no clear political agenda or ideology.

So it's just a "Jobs For Thugs" dispute.

Posted by Steve 2004-07-16 11:44:09 AM|| 2004-07-16 11:44:09 AM|| Front Page Top

#6 ...put him on trial for suspected corruption.

Is it me or is this a 'pot calling the kettle black' moment?

Posted by Raj 2004-07-16 12:39:54 PM|| 2004-07-16 12:39:54 PM|| Front Page Top

#7 Steve - so its ideological in the Chicago sense - "why d'all da good jobs go ta DAT ward, huh?"

Posted by Liberalhawk 2004-07-16 1:00:35 PM|| 2004-07-16 1:00:35 PM|| Front Page Top

#8 AP adds this

Earlier, men loyal to Mohammed Dahlan, the former Palestinian security chief, burst into Jabali's office and assaulted him.

In February, a gunfight between Jabali's officers and Dahlan loyalists erupted in Jabali's headquarters in Gaza City. One policeman was killed and 10 other people were wounded.

That clarifies the Jabali-Dahlan relationship - not particularly close, Id say.

Posted by Liberalhawk 2004-07-16 1:22:54 PM|| 2004-07-16 1:22:54 PM|| Front Page Top

#9 Not corrupt enough, probably.

Posted by Meester Feester 2004-07-16 1:25:19 PM|| 2004-07-16 1:25:19 PM|| Front Page Top

#10 Are we sure this isn't an episode of "Palestinian Punk'd",hosted by Ashwar Al-Kutchnar?

Posted by Stephen 2004-07-16 1:25:47 PM|| 2004-07-16 1:25:47 PM|| Front Page Top

#11 Yet ANOTHER kidnapping, or am i just confused?

Col. Khaled Abu Aloula, director of military coordination in the southern part of Gaza was abducted less than six hours later.

Palestinian security officials said the kidnappers were Palestinian policemen who had recently been fired from their jobs. The officials said that earlier in the day Aloula had refused a request to help reinstate them.

Posted by Liberalhawk 2004-07-16 2:01:21 PM|| 2004-07-16 2:01:21 PM|| Front Page Top

#12 I guess the UN guy was wrong. Everything's fine in the PA

Posted by Frank G 2004-07-16 2:10:39 PM|| 2004-07-16 2:10:39 PM|| Front Page Top

#13 I swear im not making this up - AP reports five, count 'em, five French citizens kidnapped in Gaza.

Posted by Liberalhawk 2004-07-16 4:06:04 PM|| 2004-07-16 4:06:04 PM|| Front Page Top

#14 oops, beat by the army of Steve.

Posted by Liberalhawk 2004-07-16 4:06:45 PM|| 2004-07-16 4:06:45 PM|| Front Page Top

#15 Yet ANOTHER kidnapping, or am i just confused?
Nope, you're fine. There were two different Paleo-on-Paleo kidnappings today.

LH - Nah na na nah nah!

Posted by Steve 2004-07-16 4:10:49 PM|| 2004-07-16 4:10:49 PM|| Front Page Top

#16 Palestinian security officials said the kidnappers were Palestinian policemen who had recently been fired from their jobs. The officials said that earlier in the day Aloula had refused a request to help reinstate them.

Lets THINK about this. First lets take it as given that all these kidnappings are coordinated. Means somebody with organization is doing it, not just some ex-security thugs.

They press Yasser to promise to try Jabali for corruption. Yassers main man in Gaza, whos clashed with Dahlan before.

Then they press to be reinstated in security force. Now why were they fired to begin with - cost cutting? Corruption and incompetence? Come on NOW, this is Arafats PA we're talking about. Or were they fired in an attempt to purge the Gaza security services of Dahlan loyalists, before the Israelis leave and the excrement hits the fan??

Connecting the dots, I say this IS a preemptive Gaza-wide coup by Dahlan against Arafat, and IF Arafat resists, or calls in Hamas, then yes it IS civil war time.

OTOH, I cant make head or tail out of grabbing the Frogs. Thats a very dangerous thing, if its connected to Dahlan - perhaps they just got in the way of another operation? Haaretz reports theyve been brought to the Pal Red Crescent, which is surrounded by armed men.

Posted by Liberalhawk 2004-07-16 4:22:33 PM|| 2004-07-16 4:22:33 PM|| Front Page Top

#17 Wow - Byzantine is almost inadequate! I do not know enough about the factional linkages, power-plays, and other aspects of the players (Dahlan, Qurei, Jabali, Arafat, et al), LH, to make any sense of this. It matters less to me which cockroach wins, in other words. Wow, again, regards the French NGOs - or whatever - they certainly thought they were immune to the shit as they sat there sipping their coffee, eh? I'll have to wait and see on all of the above. I sincerely hope they kill each other off in large numbers and weaken the sum. Gaza and the portion of the West Bank controlled by the Paleos could implode for all I care, in fact - just as long as they are marginalized and toothless to kill more innocents. Your expertise / knowledge in these machinations is way the hell beyond mine!

Posted by .com 2004-07-16 5:22:55 PM|| 2004-07-16 5:22:55 PM|| Front Page Top

#18 Fox just reported the release of four French hostages - implying that was the correct number. Disgruntled ex-policement, they said.

Posted by .com 2004-07-16 5:35:28 PM|| 2004-07-16 5:35:28 PM|| Front Page Top

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