Hamas agrees to withdraw militia from Gaza streets

GAZA, June 14 (Reuters) Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh and President Mahmoud Abbas reached an agreement today to remove a Hamas militia from the streets of Gaza and to integrate the force into the regular police.

Haniyeh, speaking to reporters after the two leaders met, gave no timeframe for withdrawing the paramilitary unit. The 3,000-member force had previously withdrawn from the streets but redeployed soon after, exacerbating tensions with Abbas's Fatah movement.

REUTERS CH PC1710