(IsraelNN.com) The government has granted the Fatah-controlled Palestinian Authority permission to open two armed Fatah bases in eastern Gush Etzion, Makor Rishon's Haggai Huberman reports.

The bases will be opened as police stations under Monday's decision to allow twenty such stations to be opened across Judea and Samaria.

The two eastern Gush Etzion stations will be opened in the heart of Jewish populated areas, in Arab Tekoa and in the village of Sa'ir. The dozens of armed men will be allowed to carry Kalashnikov assault rifles and handguns.

IDF: Armed PA Police Not a Concern

(IsraelNN.com) The IDF Spokesman responded to Makor Rishon's report that armed PA police will be deployed in eastern Gush Etzion, saying the activities of the Fatah men will be monitored and that they are not expected to attack Jewish motorists.

"The opening of the Palestinian police stations in Arab Tekoa and in Sa'ir are part of the framework in which twenty police stations are being opened all over the IDF central command region. The activity of those police stations will be monitored by the IDF. The Tekoa police station will not be overlooking the main Gush Etzion-Dead Sea road because the police station building will be located deeper inside the village and the Palestinian policemen who will man the station will only be allowed to act inside the village."

The spokesman went on to explain that the reason the Fatah men had to be armed "is only so they will be able to defend themselves against Palestinian criminals and in order for them to better carry out their mission."

I am so very happy that the government and the IDF is not concerned with their allowing armed terrorist or wait I mean armed PA "police officers" to operates in Gush Etzion. Are these the same kind of armed terrorist that in the late 1990's were doing joint patrols with the IDf and Border Police and then turned their rifles on the Israeli's.

I have to go on record as the father of a young women doing her Sherut Leumi government service instead of IDF service as an archaeological tour guide in Gush Etzion, that I am very concerned for my daughters safety now that we have more Arabs running around with guns in her area.