PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY

Two Palestinians convicted of collaborating with Israel have been executed by firing squad. Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat ratified the death sentences after Palestinian security courts had found both guilty of providing Israel with information that led to the killing of Palestinian activists. In the West Bank city of Nablus, Allan Bani Odeh was shot in a public square as thousands of Palestinians chanted "God is Greatest." He was sentenced to death after Palestinian security officials said he had confessed to playing a part in the November 23 explosion that killed his relative, Ibrahim Bani Odeh, in the West Bank town of Nablus. Majdi Mikkawi was shot at the main Gaza police station. He was found guilty of giving Israel information that led to the killing of four Fatah members on November 22. One was Jamal Abdel-Razek, the defendant´s uncle. "The executions of those 2 criminals will be a message to everyone who might think to betray his people and his homeland," Palestinian Justice Minister Freih Abu Meddein said. The mother of Awni Dheir, one of four Fatah members killed in the incident, welcomed the Gaza execution. "These are tears of joy," she said. "I felt ... comforted to hear the bullets and to see the execution has really taken place. I thank President Yasser Arafat." Palestinians accused Israel of assassinating the activist from the militant Hamas movement with a missile. Israeli security forces suggested he could have died from the premature explosion of a car bomb he was preparing. The Palestinian Authority has now executed five Palestinians since 1994 when it took control of most of the Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank.