Gaza police chief bars gunmen from wearing police uniforms

The Palestinian police chief in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday barred gunmen from wearing police uniforms, as part of a fledgling law-and-order campaign in the chaotic Gaza Strip.

"This is one of many steps the Palestinian police is taking to enforce the rule of law and bring security and organization to the streets," police chief Saeb al-Ajez said in a statement.

Al-Ajez said those violating the order would be punished, but did not say how.

With Palestinian police increasingly weakened by the fighting, gunmen often fill the void, settling personal scores by force or dispensing vigilante justice.

PLO leader Mahmoud Abbas is under pressure from Israel and the international community to rein in militants who have killed hundreds of Israelis in bombings and shootings in the last four years.

Abbas has said he will not use force against the militants, but is trying to persuade them to halt attacks and stop flaunting their weapons in public.

Funerals and demonstrations are often led by large groups of gunmen wearing either self-styled military fatigues or police uniforms. Some of the gunmen, particularly those from the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, a violent group with ties to Abbas' ruling Fatah movement, are also members of the security services.