DEBBIE ELLIOTT, host: From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Debbie Elliott.</s>DEBBIE ELLIOTT, host: Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas swore in a new emergency government today, it's to replace the Hamas-led cabinet he dissolved last week after Hamas seized control of the Gaza strip. Hamas calls the new government illegal.</s>DEBBIE ELLIOTT, host: We'll hear from a member of the new cabinet in a few moments, but we begin our coverage with NPR's Linda Gradstein in Jerusalem.</s>LINDA GRADSTEIN: The new government is headed by Salam Fayyad, a respected economist who will serve as prime minister, foreign minister, and finance minister. The other government members are technocrats with the exception of an ex-guerilla leader as interior minister. Fayyad said his first priority is security. Although today was quiet, yesterday, masked gunmen took over government buildings in Ramallah, Nablus and Hebron.</s>LINDA GRADSTEIN: There was some good news today for tens of thousands of civil servants in Gaza. The European union said it will continue paying their monthly allowances despite the Hamas takeover. The payments are the only thing keeping food on the table for many Gazans. But there are fears of a looming humanitarian crisis with the border crossings in and out of Gaza closed. Hospital supplies are already running short.</s>LINDA GRADSTEIN: Eight Israeli human rights groups today appealed to the defense minister to open the border crossings for humanitarian cases. They're also concerned about hundreds of Palestinians in Gaza, among them 50 children who are trapped at the area's crossing. They have ties to Fatah, they fear they will be killed by Hamas. They are trying to reach the West Bank via Israel, but Israel worries that if it opens the border, it may be inundated by thousands of Palestinians.</s>LINDA GRADSTEIN: Linda Gradstein, NPR News, Jerusalem.
Over the protests of the Hamas movement, which won the last Palestinian elections, Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas swore in a new cabinet today in the West Bank. He also moved to outlaw Hamas militias.