During a two -day meeting earlier this week, the head of the Palestine Liberation Organization, Mahmoud Abbas, was scheduled to deliver a televised speech in front of a commission that the Palestinians were considered one day as a representative of their national movement.
For forty minutes, officials of the Central Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization read the names and delivered letters.But when it was time for Abbas to address the crowd, the cameras stopped filming.
This may be appropriate for the event.After all, the meeting of the Central Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization seemed to revolve around strengthening the strength of the elderly president in the ranks of the organization and the policies of the Baroque tiles for those who may one day succeed behind the scenes, more than being related to expressing the people's vision of the Palestinian.
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The number was promoted from those close to major positions during the conference, which was held despite the boycott of a number of Palestinian factions, including the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, the most prominent opposition faction of the Fatah movement led by Abbas.
In public statements, officials in opening the meeting described the meeting as an attempt to formulate a new national vision in light of the stormy political circumstances that strike the authority of Ramallah.But nothing new from the conference - neither a new strategy nor even a new speech.The only concrete result was to appoint reliable consultants to Abbas to high positions.
The issue of who will be the heir of Abbas will remain its weight on Palestinian policy.Abbas has not yet chosen any successor competitor for him, and instead chose to manipulate many competitors and made them turn against each other.
Just as the Sheikh was chosen for the position of the Emir of the Executive Committee on Sunday, the veteran official in Fatah, Mahmoud Al -Aloul, was appointed as Vice President of the Fatah movement in 2018, which sparked a wave of speculation that it might be Abbas’s choice.While he is still a potential candidate, Al -Aloul is still one of many others.
However, it is not clear whether most Palestinians have given a lot of time and think about the political game that took place at the conference.
"Some believe that the caliphate can be determined in secret deals made by a few individuals, whether in Fatah or in the Palestine Liberation Organization.This is crazy. ”
مسؤولون فلسطينيون كبار يحضرون مؤتمرا نادرا لقيادة منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية في 6 فبراير 2022 (وفا)But the Palestinian national elections have not been held for more than 15 years.Abbas postponed indefinitely the last voting operation that was scheduled to take place in late April last year, for fear of being defeated by his opponents inside Fatah and in Hamas.
A demonstration to protest against the organization's conference, which Abbas organized in attracting the masses, failed.But on Saturday, hundreds of Palestinians gathered in the center of Hebron in a greater demonstration to protest against the high prices of food and gas, describing the leadership as a "gang of criminals".
"The Palestinian people do not care whether the Executive Committee includes 15 members, 11 or whatever.There are other problems that must be solved: Jerusalem, settlements, prisoners, confronting the occupation. ”
"Our friend"
The conference is likely to help consolidate the Sheikh officially.It is considered one of the most powerful and most controversial characters in the West Bank.
The sheikh, who is one of Abbas's closest advisers, has always played a major role in Palestinian politics.Despite his lack of popular support, the Sheikh's appointment to the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization - which is widely expected to lead to his assumption of the role he occupied by Saeb Erekat as a negotiator with Israel - may enhance his nomination in the battle of the eighty president.
Over the past few years, Najm Al -Sheikh has greatly climbed.The Palestinian Authority may officially have a foreign minister and a person responsible for the treatment of international relations.But in practice, it seems that the Sheikh has assumed some of these tasks, as he continuously met with American and European diplomats and traveled to attend the summit conferences in Cairo with Abbas.
مفوض الشؤون المدنية في السلطة الفلسطينية حسين الشيخ. (وفا)More importantly, the Sheikh has close relations with his Israeli counterparts, and alongside intelligence chief Majid Faraj attended all the meetings between Abbas and senior Israeli officials during the past year.Two weeks ago, he met separately with Foreign Minister Yair Lapid.Whenever the new Israeli government decides to approve a Palestinian request, the sheikh is the one who announces it to the Palestinian public.
"How is the Sheikh viewed on our part?" Said a former senior Israeli security official, who asked not to be named.It is our friend. ”
He added: “This is our man, our relationship with him is very good.He does a lot to ensure stability on the ground.But his position locally is very problematic.It is a symbol of the corruption of the Palestinian Authority. ”
The General Authority for Civil Affairs headed by the Sheikh controls the coordination line between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.The commission has been marked by rumors of corruption and favoritism in it, especially regarding the precious permits to work in Israel, construction in the West Bank areas subject to the Israeli administration, and travel without trouble across the Israeli barriers.
The former official said, “The sheikh is a man who does not have public legitimacy.Without his prayers with Israel and a lesser degree in the United States, he will not have a source of strength.
The former official, Sheikh Bashir Al -Gemayel, likened the Lebanese Maronite leader whom Israel cooperated until his assassination in 1982. Ariel Sharon, who was the Minister of Defense at that time, was hoping that Gemayel would turn hostile Lebanon into a strong Christian ally of Israel.
But the Israeli plan collapsed in the first Lebanon war disaster.Gemayel proved that he was unable to fulfill his promises and drag Israel to the depth of the conflict.Its legacy is still controversial in Lebanon to this day.
It is still unclear whether Abbas intends to appoint the Sheikh or any other competitor to him.But the rise of the Sheikh - such as the accompanying Palestine Liberation Organization conference - is taking place far from the Palestinian public.
Al -Qudawah said: “The meeting of the entire committee is a continuation of a vision that benefits a few people who seek to take over the entire matter.But in the end, there is no legitimacy for that. ”