Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas said Monday he expects Hamas to hand in its weapons after Palestinian elections this summer, but he stopped short of threatening to disarm the Islamic militants by force.
A Hamas official dismissed the call, saying Abbas should first disarm his own Fatah movement.
In violence Monday, Israeli soldiers shot and killed a Palestinian taxi driver after his vehicle ran over and killed an Israeli at a roadblock near the West Bank city of Hebron, rescue workers said. Israeli security officials said it appeared to be a deliberate attempt to hit the Israeli. Palestinians said the driver had no political ties, and the roadblock was not a permanent fixture, indicating that the hit and run was an accident.
Abbas has been under pressure from the US and Israel to rein in armed groups, as called for in the internationally backed "road map" peace plan. While repeatedly calling on militants to halt their attacks on Israel, Abbas has refused to take action against them, preferring instead to negotiate.
Hamas, the largest Palestinian opposition group, has said it will participate in legislative elections, which are set to take place on July 17. It would be the first time the group has sought a place in the Palestinian parliament.
During a news conference at his office in Gaza, Abbas welcomed the Hamas desire to join the political process. But he said Hamas, which has carried out dozens of suicide bombings against Israelis, would be expected to give up its militant activities after the vote.
"When a movement or militia is transformed into a political party, I would say that there will then be no need for them to possess weapons," Abbas told reporters.
School bullies in Singapore are to face caning under new guidelines, but the education minister on Tuesday said it would be meted out only as a last resort with strict safeguards. Human rights groups regularly criticize Singapore for the use of corporal punishment, which remains part of the school and criminal justice systems, but authorities have defended it as a deterrent to crime and serious misconduct. Caning was discussed in the parliament after legislators asked how it would be used in relation to bullying in schools. The debate followed stricter guidelines on serious student misconduct, including bullying, unveiled by the Singaporean Ministry of
A MESSAGE: Japan’s participation in the Balikatan drills is a clear deterrence signal to China not to attack Taiwan while the US is busy in the Middle East, an analyst said The Japan Self-Defense Forces yesterday fired a Type 88 anti-ship missile during a joint maritime exercise with US, Australian and Philippine forces, hitting a decommissioned Philippine Navy ship in waters facing the disputed South China Sea, in drills that underscore Tokyo’s rising willingness to project military power on China’s doorstep. The drill took place as Manila and Tokyo began talks on a potential defense equipment transfer, made possible by Japan’s decision to scrap restrictions on military exports. The discussions include the possible early transfer of Abukuma-class destroyers and TC-90 aircraft to the Philippines, Japanese Minister of Defense Shinjiro Koizumi said. Philippine Secretary of
‘GROSS NEGLIGENCE?’ Despite a spleen typically being significantly smaller than a liver, the surgeon said he believed Bryan’s spleen was ‘double the size of what is normal’ A Florida surgeon who is facing criminal charges after allegedly removing a patient’s liver instead of his spleen has said he is “forever traumatized” by that person’s death. In a deposition from November last year that was recently obtained by NBC, 44-year-old Thomas Shaknovsky described the death of 70-year-old William Bryan as an “incredibly unfortunate event that I regret deeply.” Bryan died after the botched surgery; and last month, a grand jury in Tallahassee indicted Shaknovsky on a charge of manslaughter. “I’m forever traumatized by it and hurt by it,” Shaknovsky added, also saying that wrong-site surgeries can happen “during
A South Korean judge who last week more than doubled former South Korean first lady Kim Keon-hee’s prison sentence was found dead yesterday, police said. Shin Jong-o was found unconscious at about 1am at the Seoul High Court building, an investigator at the Seocho District Police Station in Seoul said. Shin was taken to a hospital and pronounced dead, he said. “There is no sign of foul play in the death,” the investigator added. Local media reported that Shin had left a suicide note, but the investigator said there was none. On Tuesday last week, Shin presided over 53-year-old Kim’s appeal trial, finding her guilty
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