New Palestinian cabinet in crisis

Tensions were out in the open this week

The Palestinian leadership faces a new crisis amid reports Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei has threatened to resign just two days after being sworn in.

MPs put off a vote on Thursday on Mr Qurei's emergency cabinet in protest at not being consulted about its make-up.

At a meeting with Yasser Arafat described as stormy, Mr Qurei reportedly threatened to quit his post.

The crisis comes as dozens of Israeli tanks, backed by helicopter gunships, carried out a raid on a Gaza Strip refugee camp on Friday, with reports of three Palestinians being killed and 20 injured in subsequent fighting.

The Israelis say the raid on the Rafah camp, which lies on the Gaza Strip's border with Egypt, was aimed at destroying tunnels used by the Palestinians to smuggle weapons.

New weaponry

Israeli engineering units with dogs trained in locating tunnels joined the search for secret passages believed to stretch all the way into Egypt.

Military sources said they were acting on intelligence that Palestinian militants were seeking to bring in new kinds of deadlier weapons such as anti-aircraft missiles for use in attacks on Israel.

Qurei (right) is regarded as an Arafat loyalist

In the West Bank town of Ramallah Palestinian sources quoted Mr Qurei as telling Mr Arafat angrily "I want you to relieve me of this job" before leaving the compound where the Palestinian leader has been kept under virtual house arrest.

Sources close to Mr Qurei say he was indignant at Mr Arafat's attempts to "interfere" over security issues.

The BBC's James Reynolds in Ramallah says no one is sure whether Mr Qurei's parting words amounted to a formal threat to resign or whether they were just words of frustration at the end of a disappointing day.

Mr Qurei's predecessor, Mahmoud Abbas, resigned following a power struggle with Mr Arafat.

Senior officials were said to be working to smooth over the reported dispute and more talks are set to be held later on Friday to try to find a solution.

Roadmap at stake

While the arguments rage, efforts to revive the international peace plan known as the roadmap are likely to be kept on hold, our correspondent says.

Mediators have indicated that only once a new Palestinian government is in place will they have any chance of getting the plan under serious discussion.

EMERGENCY CABINET Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei Foreign Minister Nabil Shaath Finance Minister Salam Fayad Interior Minister Nasser Yousef Chief Negotiator Saeb Erekat Education Minister Nabil Abul Hummus Local Affairs Minister Jamal Shobaki Jawad Tibi and Abdel Rahman Hamad (positions not given) Analysis: Bleak prospects

There is no indication that Mr Qurei has formally tendered his resignation in writing.

Mr Arafat kept a low profile on Thursday and Palestinian officials said he had a bad case of flu.

The cabinet's formation was announced on Sunday, as the Palestinian leadership declared a state of emergency in the wake of a suicide bombing in northern Israel.

Members of parliament had been waiting for an hour for Thursday's session to begin when the postponement was announced, according to the Associated Press.

Sources said no new date had been set for the Palestinian Authority (PA) to present its cabinet.

Members were angry that the Palestinian leader had tried to bypass them by using an emergency decree and warned they would not support Mr Qurei's cabinet of eight in any vote of confidence presented by the PA.

The session in Ramallah had also been expected to hear Mr Qurei outline plans to relaunch peace efforts and prepare for new elections.