RAMALLAH — Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, under heavy pressure from Egypt and the United States, has decided to reorganize Fatah-aligned forces in the Gaza Strip.

PA security sources said Abbas intends to approve a plan that would reshuffle every PA agency under his direct control. The sources said the plan would replace nearly 200 senior officers in Fatah-aligned units in an effort to confront Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

"Abu Mazen's [Abbas] problem is not a lack of manpower," a source said. "He has plenty of manpower. His problem is that there is no command structure."

Meanwhile, the Bush administration has decided to transfer additional aid to security forces loyal to Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, Middle East Newsline reported.

Officials said the administration has approved $83 million to forces loyal to Abbas. They said the money would be transferred by mid-January in a move coordinated with the new Democratic-controlled Congress.

Abbas has told the United States that the force would reach 4,700 officers by mid-2008. Officials said the force has been hampered by poor leadership and low morale.

"The forces are in poor shape and most of what they have has to be replaced," an official said. "It's not enough that they have guns." [On Sunday, Fatah security chief Mohammed Dahlan told tens of thousands of supporters in Gaza City that the movement led by Abbas would retaliate for any Hamas attack. Abbas and Fatah have called for the dismantling of Hamas's Executive Force.]

The sources said the shake-up would focus on the Presidential Guards and the National Security Forces, particularly in the Gaza Strip. The PG has 3,700 officers, with new recruits trained by Egypt and Jordan and financed by the United States.

Under the plan, Abbas would replace about 160 senior officers in Fatah-aligned units in Gaza Strip. They said many of the officers would be retired, with pensions paid by the United States. In their place, Abbas would appoint young recently-trained commanders.

The sources said the plan was drafted by Dahlan, the founder of the Preventive Security Apparatus and appointed by Abbas as the security chief of Fatah-aligned forces in the Gaza Strip. Dahlan has been hampered by the refusal of PA veteran officers to follow his orders.

Officials said the latest allocation marked an increase of a previous decision to relay $42 million to Abbas. They said the $83 million would be used for communications, security vehicles, infrastructure, uniforms, salaries and combat training.

"Our primary concern is to make sure that none of these funds in any way are able to be used by Hamas or benefit a Hamas-led government," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said on Jan. 5. "So here we're being very careful and scrupulous in building in the safeguards."

Most of the money would be used to develop the Presidential Guards. Officials said the force contains 3,700 officers, well below the planned level of 6,000.

The United States has also encouraged Egypt to help train the Presidential Guards. Officials said Egypt has been training and advising forces loyal to Abbas.

"The Gaza Strip has been used by Al Qaida for training with Hamas, and terrorists could return to the Sinai Peninsula for additional attacks," an official said. "This is a key concern of Egypt."