RAMALLAH, West Bank ? Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas asked Parliament Thursday to either support him or strip him of his post, saying infighting was keeping him from making progress on a U.S.-backed peace plan.

Weakened by a power struggle with Yasser Arafat, Abbas told legislators he must be given full power to carry out reforms required by the “road map” peace plan. If the demand is met, Abbas would have a stronger hand against militants he is pressing to stop attacks against Israelis.

Abbas, summing up his first 100 days in office, stopped short of seeking a vote of confidence that could topple him, but said he was leaving his future in Parliament’s hands.

“I am not attached to this post and I am not (making) and will not make any effort to keep this post. It is a difficult mission that many describe as impossible,” Abbas said.

At the start of the parliamentary session, about 200 activists in Arafat’s Fatah movement demonstrated in support of their leader. Seven masked men from the crowd broke down a door to the building and smashed windows before guards forced them out.

Also Thursday, Palestinian gunmen shot and killed an Israeli soldier in an ambush near the West Bank town of Jenin. The Al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigade, an armed group loosely linked to Fatah, claimed responsibility.

Abbas’ appeal is the latest chapter in a power struggle that began just after Arafat, under strong international pressure, appointed him in April. The two wrangled over Abbas’ Cabinet choices and Arafat has refused to give him complete control over Palestinian security forces.

A Palestinian woman participates in a pro-Yasser Arafat demonstration in front of the Gaza branch of the Palestinian Legislative Council building in Gaza City, Gaza Strip. Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas, in Ramallah, addressed the Palestinian Parliament Thursday.

Masked pro-Arafat activists try to break the door of the entrance of the Palestinian Parliament at the start of the session. About 200 activists demonstrated Thursday in support of their veteran leader in the west bank town of Ramallah as Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas addressed Parliament to sum up his first 100 days in office.