PLO: 3000 policemen dispatch to take control of Gaza

The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) has called for the dispatch of 3,000 policemen from the West Bank to the Gaza Strip, a senior PLO leader has told Anadolu Agency.

“The move is aimed at establishing control over Gaza’s [Hamas-run] police stations,” Wasil Abu Yousef, a senior member of the PLO’s authoritative Executive Committee, said Monday.

Cairo agreement

Late last year, the Hamas movement in Gaza and Fatah in the West Bank (which leads the PLO) signed a landmark reconciliation deal in Cairo aimed at ending a decade of bitter political division.

The agreement called for several confidence-building measures, including the dispatch of 3,000 policemen from the Ramallah-based Palestinian government to Gaza.

The measures, however, have yet to be implemented, due, primarily, to deep-seated differences between the rival factions over administrative and security-related issues.

Special panel

Following a meeting in Ramallah last month, the PLO Executive Committee drew up a special panel tasked with – among other things – following up on the stalled reconciliation process.

The panel’s recommendations are now expected to be presented at a meeting of the Executive Committee slated for next week.

It remains unclear, however, whether the Executive Committee – led by Palestinian President and Fatah Chairman Mahmoud Abbas – will implement the panel’s recommendations.

Hamas, for its part, which remains in de facto control of the Israeli-blockaded Gaza Strip, has yet to officially comment on the recommendations.