Abbas stresses govt has monopoly on force
Published yesterday (updated) 17/01/2013 21:50
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=557096

RAMALLAH (Ma’an) -- President Mahmoud Abbas held a meeting of security
chiefs on Thursday after gunmen held protests in West Bank refugee camps
over the past week.

The president said that no one is above the law, stressing that the
government has a monopoly on the use of force, in comments carried by the
official Wafa news agency.

Abbas issued instructions to the security services to intensify their
efforts to maintain security in accordance with the law, Wafa said.

Over the past week, gunmen claiming affiliation to Fatah's military wing
held protests in Nablus' Balata refugee camp and the Jenin camp.

They say they are protesting confiscation of their weapons by Palestinian
Authority security forces and detention of group members.

The protesters call themselves resistance fighters who support the
president, targeting blame for the security crackdown on PA security
officials. Fatah's military wing officially disbanded in the aftermath of
the second intifada.