RAMALLAH, July 3: Confusion surrounded an announcement on Wednesday by Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat of a major purge, as demanded by Washington, of his security apparatus, with a top “dismissed” official insisting that he was still on duty.

Under mounting pressure to reform his beleaguered administration, Arafat fired the powerful head of his West Bank preventive security service, Colonel Jibril Rajoub, and another long-time security chief and police commander General Ghazi Jabali.

But Jibril Rajoub said he had received no presidential decree ordering his dismissal and that the reports were part of an attempt to discredit him and his unit. “I think someone is trying to harm the whole security services and leak such lies and baseless stories,” Rajoub said in Ramallah. Rajoub said he would be ready to step aside if Arafat ordered his dismissal.—Reuters