US to increase financing to Hamas opponent

So much for Democratic Elections American Style.

WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration plans to allocate at least $40 million to bolster security forces loyal to Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.

Officials said the administration has been urged by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to rush aid to Abbas amid the Fatah-Hamas militia war. They said Ms. Rice has determined that Abbas would require immediate U.S. military help to battle superior Hamas forces.

"The feeling in the administration is that Abbas will either fight Hamas to a draw or lose power completely," an official said.

U.S. security envoy to the PA, Gen. Keith Dayton, has sought to enhance Abbas's forces, particularly the Presidential Guards. Dayton has submitted a $42 million plan to expand the Presidential Guards to at least 6,000 troops, something the administration was expected to approve imminently.

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