RAMALLAH, April 2 (Xinhuanet) -- Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas launched a new wave of changes and reforms into security apparatuses amid surging discontent at the slow pace of reform, Palestinian security sources said Saturday.

    Palestinian National Authority (PNA) spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh said Abbas was expected to announce "significant changes" in the PNA in the coming few days, but he declined to further elaborate.

    The move was triggered after discontented members of al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, the armed wing of Abbas' Fatah movement, stormed his headquarters in the West Bank city Ramallah Wednesday.

    The group fired at the headquarters and rampaged through the city, destroying some public properties.

    Palestinian official sources said Abbas had already sacked a number of security chiefs in the West Bank, including Hajj Ismail Jabber, general-commander of PNA security forces, and Younis al-Aass, Jericho chief of the national security.

    Meanwhile, Tawfiq Tirawi, general intelligence head in the West Bank, offered resignation Thursday after he blamed his colleague for failing to impose security in the Palestinian areas, but his resignation was rejected by Abbas.

    In another development, Abbas met with Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei and Interior Minister Nasser Youssef on Saturday to discuss position changes into PNA institutions and apparatuses.

    Abbas also met with national security advisor Jibril Rajoub, a loyalist to late leader Yasser Arafat. Rajoub was tipped to be named as the West Bank security chief to replace Jabber.

    With concrete changes unfolding in the Palestinian territories, Abbas will head to the United States to meet with President George W. Bush over further reforms into security apparatuses.

    Abbas also ordered to form a committee of compensation to evaluate damages caused by militants' attack on restaurants and public properties in Ramallah.

    Abbas, who was elected PNA chairman to succeed Arafat in the Jan. 9 election, preferred to persuade militants to halt anti-Israeli attacks rather than confront them.

    However, Israel, the United States and some senior Palestinian security chiefs had accused Abbas of not doing enough in making real and serious reforms.

    Israel had postponed a pullout from the West Bank city Qalqilya due to what Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz said a Palestinian failure to rein in militants in Tulkarem, which was handed over by Israel earlier.

    In response, Abbas said his focus in the last three months was to reinforce a national unity among Palestinian factions and achieve a mutual truce with Israel rather than internal reforms. Enditem