Protests force Arafat to oust his cousin as security chief

The former security chief, who left office last week, was asked to return.
RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) -- Backing down in the face of widespread protests, Yasser Arafat replaced his cousin as Palestinian security chief today and asked the former chief to return to his job, Palestinian officials said.
The Palestinian leader phoned Brig. Gen. Abdel Razek Majaide and asked him to return to the office he left last week at Arafat's request, said Nabil Abu Rdeneh, a senior Arafat adviser.
Arafat took the decision to calm the anger that has spilled into the streets of Gaza over the appointment of Moussa Arafat, Rdeneh said. Opponents said the appointment perpetuated a system of corruption and cronyism endemic among the Palestinian leadership.
But Moussa Arafat retained a senior security post in Gaza, subordinate to Majaide who has overall authority in both Gaza and the West Bank, the officials said.
Conflict
On Sunday night, Palestinian gunmen stormed an intelligence office in one Gaza refugee camp and marched through another, protesting Moussa Arafat's appointment.
But in Gaza City today, hundreds of his supporters marched through the streets, some firing assault rifles into the air -- raising the possibility of a violent conflict over the appointment.
"We will protect you by our soul and our blood, our hero Abu Amr," the demonstrators chanted, referring to Yasser Arafat.
The turmoil in Gaza was a grave challenge for Arafat and highlighted sharp rifts between the veteran Palestinian leader and the Cabinet that is supposed to be running the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
In the Rafah refugee camp late Sunday, gunmen exchanged fire with guards at security headquarters and attempted to break into the complex with a bulldozer. The guards wounded three attackers, but there were no casualties among the security forces, staff at the building said.
A Palestinian free-lance news reporter on assignment for Reuters news agency was hit by a stray bullet, witnesses said. A Reuters staffer in Jerusalem said Ahmed Babr was shot in the leg during the Rafah firefight and was in stable condition in a local hospital.
Dozens of masked gunmen marched near Moussa Arafat's office in the Nusseirat refugee camp in central Gaza after sundown Sunday, chanting, "No to Moussa Arafat, yes to reform."
Many Palestinians feel Moussa Arafat is a member of the "old guard," steeped in corruption and known as a cruel commander.
It was the most serious internal unrest since the anti-corruption protests of 2003 that forced Arafat to appoint a new government with the first Palestinian prime minister, Mahmoud Abbas. He resigned after only four months.
There also was no solution to the standoff between Arafat and his current prime minister, Ahmed Qureia, who submitted his resignation in frustration over his inability to effect change.
"I totally reject your resignation and consider it nonexistent," Arafat told Qureia on Sunday, according to Cabinet minister Saeb Erekat, who attended the meeting. Qureia told his Cabinet earlier he was firm in his decision to quit. The Cabinet was to meet again today.
Power struggle
The turmoil came against the background of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's plan to withdraw from Gaza next year, intensifying a struggle for power and influence among the various Palestinian factions.
Sharon said the trouble reinforced his contention that Israel cannot negotiate with the present Palestinian leadership. "If somebody wants to see it better, we should just watch what is happening now in Gaza," he told visiting U.S. Jewish leaders on Sunday. Earlier, he told his Cabinet that the unrest reinforces Israel's need to pull out of Gaza.
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