NO CRISIS HERE; MOVE ALONG

Police station burned as Arafat denies crisis
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Militants raided a Palestinian police station and a local government office on Saturday, as unrest in the Gaza Strip stretched into a second week despite efforts by Yasser Arafat to defuse mounting discontent with his leadership.

Arafat, in his first public appearance since the outbreak of demonstrations against his regime, denied he is facing a crisis and renewed his pledge to give more authority to his prime minister.
But the continuing violence in Gaza signaled skepticism over Arafat’s promises of reform, and there was no indication that his standoff with Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia and the Palestinian Cabinet was easing.

“No, no, there is no crisis,” said Arafat, facing a bank of microphones after meeting Arab diplomats in his headquarters. “There is no problem over the interior minister. There is a proposal by the Palestinian Legislative Council to carry out some changes within the Cabinet, and we gave our approval for such changes,” the Palestinian leader said.