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Palestinian Militants Get Jobs for Pledge of Nonviolence

(Baltimore Sun) John Murphy - As a teen, Munir Aqra'a earned Israel's attention by throwing Molotov cocktails, was arrested, and spent five years in an Israeli prison. By age 25, he says, during a second Palestinian uprising, he helped organize attacks that killed four Israeli soldiers and five Jewish settlers. After four years in hiding in the main Palestinian government compound, Aqra'a is still wanted by the Israelis. But this week he signed a one-page pledge to put down his weapons and not engage in attacks against Israel. In exchange, he received a job with the Palestinian security forces and a tentative pledge from Israel that he will no longer be targeted for arrest. Aqra'a, who is now paid $350 per month, said he would never arrest, let alone shoot, a member of his militant group. Mahmoud Halabi, 26, another former militant who signed the nonviolence pledge, disagreed. "To maintain law and order, I would arrest anyone," said Halabi, who is wanted by Israel for planning a suicide bombing and attacks on Jewish settlers. Since signing the pledge, the two former militants say they have not been asked to perform any duties. Both suspect that because of their militant pasts, they will be paid to stay out of trouble. "The PA doesn't want us to do anything," Aqra'a said.
2005-04-15 00:00:00
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