Abbas orders Palestinian forces onto streets

RAMALLAH, West Bank, June 12 (Reuters) Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas today ordered security forces to take control of the streets after clashes with Hamas loyalists, a senior Palestinian official said.

The order for a ''state of alert'' in the West Bank and Gaza Strip came amid growing confrontation between the governing Hamas Islamists and forces loyal to Abbas.

The official said Abbas gave the order after Hamas gunmen besieged the headquarters of the Preventive Security force in the southern Gaza Strip town of Rafah.

''He has asked members of all the security services to go down to the streets to impose law and order and to prevent the loss of innocent lives,'' he said.

Following the order, members of the security forces opened fire outside the parliament building in the West Bank city of Ramallah.

REUTERS SY BD2341