Gazans stage anti-Bush protests

       Palestinians staged protests against George W. Bush in Gaza on Wednesday, underscoring the deep political split with West Bank residents who have welcomed the visit of the US president as an important gesture to the Palestinians. Among those marching was a shadowy al-Qaida-inspired group, which for the first time appeared in public with rifles and rocket-propelled grenade launchers, and uttered vague threats against US targets. Bush arrived in Israel on Wednesday, as part of a three-day visit that also includes a meeting in the West Bank on Thursday with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, as well as a pilgrimage to Jesus' traditional birth grotto in biblical Bethlehem.However, Abbas aide Saeb Erekat said that Bush's visit is important as a show of support for the negotiations. "We don't expect President Bush to come here and conduct the negotiations between us and the Israelis, and we don't expect President Bush to make the decisions required by us and the Israelis," he said. Hamas was to hold a large protest rally later Wednesday. In a run-up to the protest, dozens of Hamas supporters marched through the streets, denouncing Bush as a war criminal. Artists affiliated with Hamas were seen working on a large painting of Bush, portraying him as the head of the snake being hit with a shoe by a Palestinian child. Fawzi Barhoum, a Hamas spokesman, said Abbas should not rely on the US or "run after the illusion of so-called peace."(15,33)