Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas said in remarks published on Thursday there were signs of an Al-Qaeda presence in the Gaza Strip and West Bank. "This is the first time I speak on this issue as it is very serious matter," Abbas told London-based al-Hayat newspaper.
"This is intelligence information. We have not yet reached the point of arrests," the Palestinian leader told the paper while on visit in Yemen. "The last security report I received (on this issue) was three days ago," he disclosed."
Abbas warned that further infiltration by al Qaeda into Palestinian areas could jeapordize the entire region. "The infiltration of al-Qaeda can ruin the whole region,'' he stated.
Israel has in the past warned that al-Qaeda was operating in the Gaza Strip, and arrested a Palestinian allegedly working with the network.
