Struggle To Control Gaza

Palestinian gunrunners smuggled hundreds of assault rifles and pistols into Gaza across the wide-open border with Egypt, dealers and border officials told The Associated Press on Wednesday. The influx confirmed Israeli fears about giving up border control and could further destabilize already chaotic Gaza.

Scores of Palestinians also crossed from Gaza into Egypt Wednesday evening before Egyptian security forces closed the border in an attempt to restore order.

The smuggling came as Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas tried to impose order following the Israeli troop withdrawal from Gaza earlier in the week. Militant groups on Wednesday scoffed at a new demand by the Palestinian Authority that they disband after parliament elections in January, and said they would not surrender their weapons.

Palestinians have looted dozens of greenhouses in former Gaza settlements, stealing hoses, electrical cables and plastic sheeting, reports CBS News Correspondent Robert Berger. American Jewish donors bought the greenhouses from Israeli farmers for $14 million, with the aim of providing jobs and boosting the Palestinian economy.

Elsewhere in Gaza, a Hamas militant disrupted a celebratory rally at an abandoned Jewish settlement, grabbing a microphone from a rap singer who was led away by police firing into the air. No one was injured.

Israel voiced sharp concern about the continued chaos along the Egypt-Gaza border in the wake of its pullout, sending message to the U.S., Egypt and the Palestinians. "We will not put up with this," Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz said Wednesday, adding he hopes Egypt will take control soon.

Egypt had assured Israel that it would prevent weapons smuggling once its troops take over from Israeli soldiers along the Gaza frontier.

Egypt and the Palestinian Authority pledged they would seal the border by Wednesday evening, after thousands had crossed unhindered in both directions since Monday. Around 8 p.m. Wednesday, about two hours after the initial deadline for closing the border, an Egyptian officer bellowed into a bullhorn telling Palestinians to stop entering Egypt and prepare to return to Gaza. Police guarded a barbed wire fence on the Egyptian side of the border, blocking hundreds of people on either side of the border as well as inside a buffer area in between.
Earlier in the day, Egypt had confiscated 38 firearms and three rocket-propelled grenades in a tunnel under the border, an Egyptian official said. On the Palestinian side, guards said they also seized some 590 pounds of marijuana.

Imposing security in unruly Gaza is seen as the key test of Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas' government.

President Bush said Wednesday the Palestinians should make the most of Israel's withdrawal from Gaza.

"Now is the time for Palestinians to come together and establish a government that will be peaceful with Israel," Mr. Bush told Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon at the start of a meeting between U.N. sessiona.

Turning to Arab governments who have pledged massive assistance to the Palestinians but have been slow to follow through, Mr. Bush said, "Arab neighbors need to help the Palestinians develop an economy. Now is the time for people to step up."

Three arms dealers interviewed separately by The AP said their "mules' have bought large quantities of assault rifles, pistols and bullets in Egypt, mainly from Bedouin tribesmen, since the Israeli withdrawal was completed Monday. Prices in Egypt are far lower than in Gaza, where during Israeli rule smugglers dug tunnels under the border to bring in weapons. Israeli troops often caught the smugglers, and the risk drove up prices.

Since Monday, black market prices for weapons in Gaza have dropped sharply, the dealers said. The price of an AK-47 assault rifle fell from $2,000 to about $1,300, while the bullets for the weapon are now being sold for less than a dollar, when previously they cost up to $4.

Egyptian-made pistols that were recently sold in Gaza for $1,400 can now be bought for as little as $180, while an Italian pistol costs $400, down from a previous high of $3,500, said an arms dealer who identified himself only as Khader, for fear of arrest.
Another dealer, who was interviewed in a car just outside the Rafah cemetery, said hundreds of AK-47s had been smuggled from Egypt since Monday. He said he has already sold his loot to militant groups, but declined to say how many pieces his runners brought back.

Earlier Wednesday, one of Abbas' top aides unveiled what he said was a new plan of action — including a demand that armed groups disband immediately after parliamentary elections in January.

Hamas swiftly reiterated that it would not disarm, and Palestinian officials cautioned they will not risk civil war, despite intense international pressure to confront militants. A stalemate could hamper the rebuilding of impoverished Gaza and cloud prospects for the resumption of peace talks.

The rally had been billed as a show of Palestinian unity, but most of the factions and militant groups stayed away, and Abbas canceled his appearance. An aide said he was concerned about gunmen in the crowd.

Instead of taking part in Abbas' gathering, Hamas scheduled another rally for Friday, following a demonstration in Gaza City Tuesday night in which tens of thousands filled the streets.

Earlier Wednesday, Abbas' top aide, Rafiq Husseini, outlined what he said was a new security plan by Abbas.

"Our plan is that ... by the (January) election, the Palestinian street will be cleaned of militias and illegal weapons," he said.

Husseini said that starting next week, militants in the ruling Fatah movement would be absorbed in the security forces. Abbas would insist that all groups participating in the parliamentary election disband their armed groups after the vote.

The Hamas leader, Mahmoud Zahar, hotly rejected that. "We will not allow for even one gun to be taken away from us," he said. "Why should we give up our weapons while Israel still threatens our borders?"