 Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday ordered the Palestinian security services to come under the authority of three main institutions. The official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported the order, which was lated confirmed by a senior Palestinian official. The Palestinian official, according to The AP, said Abbas ordered all Palestinian security services placed under the authority of the National Security Forces, the Interior Ministry, and the General Intelligence Agency. Meanwhile, Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip was quoted as saying Thursday that years of armed struggle, and not negotiation, prompted Israel to decide to evacuate the Gaza Strip. Mahmud Zahar added his movement hoped to win its first legislative elections when it stands against Fatah in July. "Very simply, nobody can deny that if Israel is going to leave the Gaza Strip and part of the West Bank, that was because of the intifada, because of the armed struggle, because of the big sacrifices of Hamas for this goal," Zahar, 60, told The Times newspaper. |