Mideast: Pray the PA way or face arrest

The Palestinian Authority (PA) is using West Bank mosques as a new battleground in its political offensive against its opponents within Hamas as well as critics from its own Fatah party. Earlier this month, PA security forces raided several mosques in Ramallah, Nablus and Hebron before assaulting and arresting a number of Friday worshippers. The confrontations broke out after dozens of worshippers hurled abuse - in one case shoes were thrown - at imams reading a prepared sermon attacking critics of PA President Mahmoud Abbas. The sermon, which was authored by the PA's Ministry of Religious Affairs, was given to the imams who were then ordered to read it by PA officials prior to Friday prayers. The PA has been dictating the imams' speeches for about a year but Friday's controversial sermon followed an attack on Abbas by the Egyptian-born but Qatar-based Sheikh Youseff El-Qaradawi who is sympathetic to Hamas. َQaradawi launched his blistering attack on Abbas after an increasing number of foreign and local media reports alleged that the PA president had colluded with Israel's military onslaught on Gaza at the beginning of last year.