Palestinian gov't holds emergency meeting in Ramallah

While also pointing a finger at Israel, Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia on Saturday signaled his cabinet's consensus that rocket attacks on Israel should stop because they give the Jewish state what they see as a pretext for more raids.

"We appeal to all Palestinian factions ... to seriously consider the higher national interest," he told reporters in Ramallah, after cutting short a visit to Jordan.

Speaking at an emergency meeting of the Palestinian Authority held at his office in Ramallah on Saturday, PA chairman Yasser Arafat called a wide-scale IDF raid on Gaza a "monstrous, criminal, inhumane attack on our people."

The PA called the meeting in wake of the IDF operation, meant to end Qassam rockets from being fired from Gaza at Israeli towns. The operation has so far caused dozens of Palestinian deaths and injuries.

The PA has declared a state of emergency and residents of the West Bank and Gaza have declared a general commercial strike.

Palestinian militants from Yasser Arafat's Fatah faction called for Qureia's sacking on Friday, accusing him of taking a holiday during the IDF raid.

The call adds to pressure on Qureia, also a Fatah member, who faces a possible no-confidence vote by legislators who charge him with failing to ensure widely demanded reforms to curb corruption and bolster democracy.

Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, a group that has carried out dozens of suicide bombings, attacked Qureia for travelling to Jordan during an IDF raid into Gaza that has killed more than 35 Palestinians over two days.

The Brigades said Qureia "lived on another planet." In a statement, it urged Arafat to "put an end to the failed government" and also called on lawmakers to remove the prime minister.

Qureia's office confirmed he had left for Jordan, but declined to comment on the statement. The prime minister had earlier described Israel's offensive as "state terror that deliberately targets civilians".

Qureia has little political power and has threatened to resign several times over Arafat's failure to give him the authority that he has requested, but the veteran president has always persuaded him to stay on.

The military operation in Gaza followed the killing of two Israeli children by a rocket fired into a border town by Palestinian militants on Wednesday. Israel has vowed to continue its offensive.

	Ahmed Qureia (left), Hassan Abu Libdeh (center), and Yasser Arafat praying prior to an emergency cabinet meeting in Ramallah on Saturday. (AP)