Thousands of members of the Palestine Liberation Organization, whose open leader had been Ahmed Shukairy, are still at large here, many of them having shed their uniforms, hidden their arms, and taken refuge among the civilian population and in United Nations camps of Arab refugees, Brig. Gen. Moshe Goren, military governor of the Gaza Strip. Declared here today.
Israeli security forces searching Arab homes here have, thus far, found thousands of rifles. Gen. Goren said. Local mayors and village chiefs, he stated, have also turned over to the Israeli forces many light weapons. But arms are still being found by the Israeli patrols in private homes, in various Arab institutions, or hidden in orange groves and cached in the fields.
Meanwhile, however, life continues to be normal throughout the Gaza Strip. In Gaza itself, the curfew today was lifted for the daylight hours, civilians being allowed to circulate freely after 5 a.m. Public transportation has also been resumed, and gasoline is being sold at service stations at prices prevailing in Israel. Private owners of automobiles are being allowed to drive their own cars.
Most of the hospitals in the area are functioning, normally, although the majority of Arab doctors have fled. Schools have been reopened. The Gaza police force was reestablished today. Under two local Arab police officers, 120 local policemen were on duty today in the city of Gaza.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.