Qurei Accepts Prime Minister Post As Violence Mounts

Qurei said his government’s top priority will be strengthening and unifying the eight branches of the Palestinian security services, the Associated Press reported.

“All the forces will be in one framework,” he said.

Qurei plans to appoint an interior minister, a minister for security affairs and a deputy prime minister for security affairs to oversee the forces.

U.S. officials said the real test will be whether Qurei’s new Cabinet shows it can take on the Palestinian terrorist groups responsible for a recent spate of suicide bombings.

“We strongly believe that the new Cabinet needs to state clearly its opposition to all forms of terrorism, demand that all acts of terrorism cease, and insist that terrorist and military organizations not under the control of the Palestinian Authority be outlawed and dismantled,” White House spokesman Scott McClellan said.

Palestinian President Yasser Arafat chose Qurei for prime minister to replace Mahmoud Abbas, who resigned Saturday. Qurei initially said he would only accept the job if Israel ended military attacks and the targeted killings of militants. His decision changed, however, after fears that the empty position would prompt Israel to execute more intense strikes, according to the AP.

In response to yesterday’s two suicide bombings that killed 15 people, Israeli warplanes attacked the home of senior Hamas leader Mahmoud Zahar, wounding him and killing his son and bodyguard.

Wednesday was the first time that Israel had attacked a Hamas leader in his home, the AP reported. The Palestinian military wing, Izzedine al Qassam, threatened to target homes and high-rises in Israel as retaliation for the strike on Zahar’s home.

Zahar went into hiding after being treated for his injuries. In a phone interview with Arab satellite television station Al-Jazeera, Zahar said that Hamas would not be conquered.

“This course will not stop if we become martyrs — tens and hundreds have been martyred before us and the banner of jihad and martyrdom has remained,” he said.

Zahar helped found Hamas in 1987 and is highly respected in Gaza for his tough attitude.

The Israeli military said they chose Zahar as a target because he is a senior decision-maker in Hamas and directs suicide attacks.

The increasing violence in the Middle East has stalled the U.S.-backed “road map,” intended to create a Palestinian state by 2005.

“The road map is the way forward in the Middle East and we remain committed to it and will remain engaged,” McClellan said.