Palestinian leaders in the Israeli-occupied West Bank met this week to take part in years of similar activities. Their mission: to allow the authoritative chairman of the Aging Palestinian Palestinian, Mahmoud Abbas, to appoint a long-time loyalist to the senior position of the newly founded.
On Saturday night, Mr. Abbas formally named his close confidant Hussein al-Sheikh as his deputy. Some analysts believe that Mr al-Sheikh's promotion shows that Mr Abbas, 89, shows that Mr Al-Sheikh is his preferred heir, while others see it as a cosmetic reshuffle to frustrate the Palestinian leader's Arab officials.
For many Palestinians, with the outbreak of the Gaza War and their leaders’ attention to palace politics, an Israeli military operation at the North Bank has replaced thousands, further highlighting the complacency of Western-backed Palestinian authorities.
“The ship is sinking and everyone is fighting for whom and what table,” said Ghaith Al-Omari, a former consultant at the research group’s Near East Policy Institute in Washington.
According to local health officials, more than 50,000 Palestinians were killed in Israel's campaign against Hamas, who did not distinguish between civilians and combatants. The war began with Hamas' attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people and about 250 hostages.
The war attracted attention from the Palestinian cause and inspired global protests. But the fragile and internally cleaved Palestinian authorities – representatives of the Palestinians’ internationally recognized – struggled with relevance.
During his one-hour speech on Wednesday, Mr. Abbas made a lot of reiteration Familiar conversation points condemn Israel’s campaign in Gaza. He also condemned Hamas opponents, called them “the sons of the dog” and asked them to release the rest of the hostages.
The Palestinian Authority, created in the Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations in the 1990s, still overseeing parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Many Palestinians hope that the body will one day rule an independent country, but in the face of the rise of violence, negotiations for this purpose ended in the early 2000s.
An important part of the Israeli coalition management supports Israel's control in the West Bank and Gaza. Israel also regularly confiscates and rejects a large portion of the Palestinian budget, but is financially harassing Mr. Abbas's government.
Polls show that at home, the vast majority of Palestinians want Mr. Abbas to resign. Some support his Hamas rival, believing that the diplomatic attitude of Palestinian authorities failed. In response, Mr. Abbas consolidated power and hit critics.
During the war in Gaza, the Biden administration and its Arab allies urged Mr. Abbas to carry out a major overhaul of the authorities. Many Western officials viewed it as the only viable alternative to Hamas and hoped it could run the Gaza Strip after the war.
But U.S. and Arab officials have suggested that Mr. Abbas has at least given up some of his powers and he has been reluctant to do it. Palestinians have not participated in the national election since Mr. Abbas's Fatah faction lost to Hamas at the ballot box in 2006.
One demanded that Mr. Abbas appoint a PM authorizes the Prime Minister to restore the governance of the Palestinian authorities and fight corruption. Instead, he named Mohammad Mustafa, one of his closest aides, a post that many observers think is the same.
Arab leaders also urged Mr. Abbas to deal more seriously with the issue of who might inherit him, including the appointment of a deputy deputy who tried to ensure continuity, according to two Palestinian officials and a Western diplomat.
Palestinian officials said at a meeting in the summer of 2024, Saudi Arabia's crown prince Mohammed bin Salman urged Mr. Abbas to appoint a vice president.
On Saturday night, the Executive Committee of the PLA agreed with Mr. Abbas' request to Mr. al-Sheikh award the title of Vice-Chairman of the PLA Executive Committee. Mr. Al-Sheikh also said on social media that he is now under the title of “Vice President of the Palestinian State”.
“Abbas's main goal is to relieve pressure from the Arabs,” said Jehad Harb, a political analyst based in Ramallah. “But it's not clear whether he is really giving up his power.”
Saudi Arabia welcomed Mr. Al-Sheikh's appointment on Saturday, saying it was expected to “strengthen the Palestinian political system”.
Mr. al-Sheikh has long worked closely with his Israeli and American counterparts, who often describe him as a pragmatic moderate. Many Palestinians consider him a symbol of the failure of Palestinian authority and a symbol of stalemate.
But what could happen if Mr. Abbas died in the office because he refused to appoint a clear heir, resign or allow democratic elections. The result is a power struggle for senior Palestinian officials to fight for posts before their death.
