Arafat faces generational crisis

As Zubeidi describes his version of crime and punishment in Jenin, several of his young fighters thumb through fat stacks of Israeli shekels, counting up whether they have enough to buy a new M-16 on the black market. From whom? "Israelis," snap two of the men as they see whether they've reached the necessary price - about $600.

Zubeidi says the Al Aqsa Brigades have no role in the chaos shaking Gaza. But others are not so sure. Hani Masri, a political analyst in Ramallah, says that the unrest there is part of power struggle between Arafat and his former security chief in Gaza, Mohammed Dahlan.

"When we look at the Al Aqsa Brigades, we have to ask which Al Aqsa we're talking about. We have al Aqsa Brigades in Gaza which stand with Dahlan, and some which stand with Arafat," says Mr. Masri. "What is happening in Gaza is coming as a consequence of the [expected] Israeli withdrawal from Gaza which by nature gives Dahlan the upper hand." Arafat has not been able to go to Gaza for more than two years.

Dahlan, a man in his early 40s with a penchant for stylish business suits, presents a virile image next to Arafat's embattled and exhausted one. The differences between the two men overlap with a general sense of public frustration with corruption and mismanagement, and a confusion over where to lay blame.

"This is a rebellion inside Fatah," says Hafez Barghouthi, the editor of the Al Hayat al Jadida newspaper. "There is a conflict between the old generation and the young generation in Fatah. There is a young generation who wants new faces, new blood, and to remove the people who are corrupt."

Ahmed Ghneim, a member of the Fatah Revolutionary Council, argues that it's an oversimplification to cast the current problems as a generational conflict. A reformer in Arafat's political faction, he is deeply concerned about the unprecedented path the intra-Palestinian insurgency is heading down.

"We have to fight against corruption, but anarchy is more dangerous than the corruption itself," says Mr. Ghneim. "We think the call for reform should be heard inside the movement, in a legal way, and not draw the people toward civil war. People who are holding guns in the streets, taking hostages, will never bring reform. What kind of reform is that?"

"When we talk about reform, 80 percent of this feeling is from people who are committed to the Palestinian struggle against the occupation," he says.

"But 20 percent of it is people working only for their own interests."

Zubeidi, for his part, says he would agree to lay down his weapons if Arafat were to strike a peace deal with Israel. But he doesn't see that happening soon. And he doesn't see anything - including the wall meant to keep him from reaching Israel - standing in his way.

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