USA to help Palestine strengthen police forces

The United States will help Palestine strengthen police forces to combat terrorist organizations, US Secretary of State Colin Powell told the audience at Moscow's State Institute of International Relations on Wednesday.

"Mahmoud Abbas, the new Palestinian Premier, has to be able to handle the terrorist threat posed to not just Israel, but also to the people of Palestine," he stressed, recalling that he had recently met with Abbas to discuss "terrorism in Palestine and his ability to control the activity of terrorist organizations like Hamas and Islamic Jihad." "These organizations do not adhere to the principle of peaceful coexistence of the two countries," he emphasised.

"We have to help the Palestinian security forces get a chance to control these organizations," Powell stressed. "It is likely that Mahmoud Abbas' forces are not even as powerful as the terrorists. We have to strengthen them so that they could take control over Gaza and the West Bank, expose all the terrorists, and resist them." "I hope Abbas can handle this," he added.