Middle East crisis: Palestinian Authority leader expected to choose Insider as prime minister

While Mr. Abbas was determined to appoint Mr. Mustafa, a longtime insider within the authority’s highest ranks, he still held final consultations with Arab countries before signing a presidential decree tasking Mr. Mustafa with putting together of a new government, one of the Palestinian That, officials and the European Union diplomat said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to communicate with the media.

Mr Abbas could change his mind, and a decision to appoint Mr Mustafa will only be final if Mr Abbas signs a decree. After the president of the Palestinian Authority appoints a prime minister, that person has three weeks to form a government, but can take another two weeks if necessary, according to the Palestinian Basic Law.

At the end of February, Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh submitted the resignation of his cabinet, citing the need for a new government that “takes into account the emerging reality in the Gaza Strip.” Mr Shtayyeh’s government has continued as an interim government.

Hamas led a deadly attack from Gaza on Israel on October 7, and Israel has responded with heavy bombing and an invasion, vowing to break the group’s hold on the enclave. But these events have raised difficult questions about how a post-war Gaza will be governed and rebuilt.

The Palestinian Authority has limited administrative powers in the West Bank. In 2007, the country lost control of Gaza to Hamas during a power struggle.

The United States has been that calling for reforms the widely unpopular Palestinian Authority in recent months, in the hope that it could eventually take over the reins of governance in Gaza after the war. However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected such a role for the Authority.

Much of the Palestinian public views the Palestinian Authority as tainted by corruption, mismanagement and collaboration with Israel. With no functional parliament within the authority-controlled areas, 88-year-old Abbas has long ruled by decree and exerts great influence over the judiciary and prosecution system. There have been no presidential elections in the Palestinian territories since 2005, and no parliamentary elections since 2006.

While the Biden administration has not told Mr. Abbas who to appoint as prime minister, it has made clear that it hopes for an independent figure who is acceptable to ordinary Palestinians, the international community and Israel, according to Western diplomats who spoke about the issue. condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

In the Palestinian Authority, the prime minister is supposed to oversee the work of the ministries, but Mr. Abbas often intervenes in decision-making, according to analysts.

Nasser al-Qudwa, a former foreign minister whose name had been mooted as a possible prime minister, said Mr Mustafa’s appointment would represent “no real change”.

“It would replace an employee named Muhammad with another employee named Muhammad, while Abbas continues to hold all the cards. What is the change?” said Mr. Qudwa, a fierce opponent of Mr. Abbas who is also known as Abu Mazen. “Abu Mazen wants to maintain the status quo. He wants to keep all power in his own hands.”

In addition to serving as an adviser to Mr. Abbas, Mr. Mustafa, an economist trained at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., heads the Palestine Investment Fund, whose board is appointed by the authority’s president. He previously served as Minister of Economy and Deputy Prime Minister of the authority.

For weeks, Mr Abbas has indicated that he wants to appoint Mr Mustafa. In January, he sent Mr Mustafa to the World Economic Forum’s annual conference in Davos, where heads of state and foreign ministers meet to discuss global affairs.

At the conference, Mr Mustafa said he thought the Palestinian Authority could improve its governance. “We don’t want to make excuses for anyone,” he said in an extensive conversation with Borge Brende, the forum’s chairman. “The Palestinian Authority can do better when it comes to building better institutions.”

Any future Palestinian prime minister will likely face enormous challenges, including potentially trying to reconstruct the devastated Gaza Strip and improve the government’s credibility.

Jehad Harb, a Ramallah-based analyst, agreed that Mr Mustafa’s appointment would be an indication that Mr Abbas has no intention of giving up power, but he said any judgment on a new government would have to be made reserved until the public knows the identity of its ministers. , and how much authority and independence they can exercise.

“It is possible that there is an opportunity, but we can also see a missed opportunity, as we usually do,” he said.