UPDATED: SO MUCH FOR THE ROADMAP: PA WON'T DISARM MILITANTS

Palestinians say won’t disarm militants.
GAZA (Reuters) - The Palestinian Authority reiterated Wednesday it had no intention of disarming militants despite constant Israeli calls for such a move and a recent pledge to crack down on unlicensed weapons.

The announcement came amid growing friction between armed factions and security forces following the arrest of two Hamas men after a gunfight Monday night. The militants were accused of planning to attack Israel in defiance of a cease-fire.

“We have no intention of withdrawing arms of resistance,” Rashid Abu Shbak, the head of the internal Preventive Security Service, told a news conference in Gaza.

Abu Shbak specifically rejected Israel’s request for a start to disarmament before it hands over the last three of five West Bank cities it was to return to Palestinian security control under a February truce agreement.

Mediacrity has pointed out a new AP dispatch which describes the Palestinian Authority's refusal to disarm terrorist groups as a rebuff of "Israeli and U.S. demands." Rather than describe the PA refusal as a violation of the road map, the reporter instead chose to describe Israel's reaction to this violation in negative terms. He says that Israel's refusal to hand over more towns until terrorist groups are disarmed comes despite an Israeli pledge, and blames Israel for "add[ing] tension to an already shaky atmosphere." Read more at Mediacrity.