[AFP] Joseph Krauss - After seven years of hiding from the Israeli army in the West Bank city of Nablus, Abu Islam has traded his rifle and mask for an oven and an apron. The 39-year-old veteran of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, a group loosely tied to Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party, now runs a bakery in the center of town thanks to an amnesty agreement. But like many in Nablus, Abu Islam doubts that the latest Palestinian-led security crackdown on armed militias will pave the way for peace with Israel. "The day the Israelis withdraw from the West Bank, Hamas will take over," he says. Israeli officials admit the new Palestinian security plan has reduced crime in the West Bank, but have been loath to credit the Palestinians with preventing attacks on Israel and say they only pursue Hamas for their own interests. "They are not going to use the police and the security forces to prevent terror attacks," says defense ministry spokesman Shlomo Dror. "We do not expect the Palestinians to do the job we do."
2008-04-08 01:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive