Arafat, Qureia argue over interior minister

RAMALLAH, West Bank - Palestinian officials argued Saturday over who will get a key security post in their Cabinet as they worked to resolve a thorny political dispute that has held up approval of the new government.

The disagreement has been a political embarrassment for new Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia.

In the Gaza Strip, a Palestinian man was killed as battles continued in the Rafah refugee camp along the Egyptian border, where Israeli troops were searching for weapons-smuggling tunnels.

The Palestinians' political disagreement centered around the appointment of Nasser Yousef as interior minister.

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's refusal to give up full control over the security forces helped push former Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas out of office.

Arafat, who chose Yousef interior minister in an eight-member emergency Cabinet less than a week ago, withdrew his support for his old ally after Yousef refused to participate in the swearing-in of the emergency Cabinet on Tuesday.

Saturday, Arafat said he wanted to replace Yousef with Hakam Balawi, a senior Fatah official, an official told the Associated Press.

But Qureia objected to dumping Yousef just a week after he was chosen, saying it would embarrass the government, the official said.

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