Western powers seek broader role for Abbas's guard

RAFAH, Gaza Strip, Apr 28 (Reuters) When Juhanna Sankelo and fellow monitors speed to work along the Gaza-Egyptian border, they are escorted by two Dodge RAM trucks packed with heavily armed, black-clad men loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas.

European monitors say the presidential guard's show of force at the Rafah terminal has bolstered security, reduced smuggling and improved the flow of travellers at the only Palestinian-controlled border crossing.

The deployment has also stoked tensions with Hamas and other security services, and put a spotlight on the expanding role Western powers envision for the elite presidential guard.

''There has been a shift,'' said a Western diplomat involved in the deliberations. After years of bolstering the so-called preventive security service, the United States and Europe are ''turning to the presidential guard as the one to back.'' Unlike the presidential guard, which solely answers to Abbas, preventive security falls under the Hamas-led Interior Ministry, which is being shunned by Washington.

US and European diplomats say the presidential guard should take the lead in guarding all of Gaza's crossings and eventually the Allenby Bridge linking the West Bank to Jordan.

''The situation has improved'' since the arrival of the presidential guard, said Sankelo of Finland after being escorted to Rafah in an armour-plated vehicle wearing a flack-jacket and anti-fragmentation helmet. ''There was a clear change.'' The quartet of mediating powers -- the United States, the EU, the U.N. and Russia -- are considering providing funding to expand the 2,500-member presidential guard, officials said.

Under an initial proposal, the force would add between 500 and 1,000 men, using Western aid for training and equipment. ''They want to build up the forces under Abbas,'' said a U.S. official familiar with the discussions.

Another source close to U.S. deliberations said the goal was to create ''a credible force to fight terrorism if Hamas won't.'' If expanded to 3,500 members, the presidential force would rival in size a new police force being set up by Hamas, whose charter calls for Israel's destruction.

RACE TO BEEF UP FORCES Israeli analyst Ehud Yaari, a specialist in Palestinian issues, said: ''Everybody is racing to ... beef up these units. Down the road there might be a showdown.'' But Yaari downplayed the chances that a bigger presidential guard would be able to exert much influence. ''They can't stand up to the other forces.'' While the United States has issued orders barring most dealings with Palestinian security forces, it made exceptions for Abbas, his guard and the intelligence apparatus he controls.

''If the president asks us to go to another border, we are capable and we can do it quickly,'' Musbah El-Bhaisi, commander of the presidential guard, said during a tour of Rafah.

One of Abbas's biggest power plays since Hamas trounced his Fatah faction in January elections came on April 11 when he ordered his presidential guard to take control of Rafah.

The border was run by Israelis until the Jewish state withdrew from Gaza last year. Israel now monitors Rafah using a system of 40 cameras, some hidden behind one-way mirrors.

Abbas's decision to exert control over Rafah was meant to reassure Europe that its 65 monitors would be protected and need not withdraw. British and U.S. monitors withdrew last month from a West Bank prison, allowing Israel to seize a militant leader, an embarrassment Abbas hoped not to repeat.

A European official described the growing Western focus on the presidential guard as a marriage of convenience. ''They're the best of two evils,'' the official said, noting that some members of the presidential guard were former Force 17 members. Israel had accused Force 17 of involvement in terrorism, a charge Palestinian officials denied.

Fatah official Jibril al-Rajoub said the presidential guard was gaining support because of its reputation for discipline. ''They want someone who will do the job, do the mission.'' REUTERS CH ND1824