GAZA/RAMALLAH, West Bank: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah party expelled one of its senior officials on Thursday over his attempt to field a separate list of candidates in a parliamentary election.
In a statement, Fatah’s Central Committee said it had given Nasser Al-Qudwa two days to reverse his decision and drop his breakaway challenge, but that he had failed to comply.
Qudwa, a member of the committee and a nephew of late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, told Reuters he would issue a comment later.
Last week, Qudwa announced he would form a list to run against Fatah in the May legislative vote.
He called on party member Marwan Barghouti, a popular Palestinian leader serving life imprisonment in Israel after being convicted of orchestrating deadly attacks against Israeli, to head the candidate roster.
Abbas, 85, has ruled the Palestinian Authority (PA) in the Israeli-occupied West Bank by decree for over a decade, and the last Palestinian election was 15 years ago.
In January, Abbas announced legislative and presidential votes, seen as a response to criticism of the democratic legitimacy of his rule.
In its statement, the Central Committee, which Abbas heads, said it had expelled Qudwa “after all efforts exerted with him failed.” Abbas had dispatched some of his confidants to try to persuade Qudwa to change course.
Hani Habib, a Gaza-based political analyst, said the committee’s move “may serve to prevent some (Abbas) opponents within Fatah from breaking away or even joining Qudwa’s election list.”
Abbas and his inner circle have pledged party unity as they seek to fend off a challenge by their main rival Hamas, the Islamist group that seized control of Gaza in 2007.
Opinion polls show Hamas leaders edging out Abbas in the presidential ballot, planned for July. But polls also put Barghouti, long seen as a potential successor to Abbas, ahead of any other candidates.
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Fatah sacks longtime party member over Palestine election breakaway bid
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Fatah sacks longtime party member over Palestine election breakaway bid
- Nasser Al-Qudwa given two days to reverse his decision and drop his breakaway challenge
Radical Israeli settlers post list of their attacks on West Bank Palestinians
JERUSALEM: The radical Israeli settler group Hilltop Youth has published a tally of attacks it says it carried out against Palestinians over the past month in the occupied West Bank, describing the violence as its “struggle against the Arab enemy.”
The movement, known for hard-line activism and involvement in efforts to drive Palestinians from parts of the territory, posted the list on its Telegram channel on Wednesday, detailing incidents it claimed responsibility for.
The tally, titled “Monthly summary of the struggle against the Arab enemy in the Holy Land,” lists 29 vehicles set ablaze, 12 homes torched, “40 Arabs injured,” and hundreds of windows smashed and olive trees cut down across 33 towns and villages.
Five of them are in Mikhmas, a village near Ramallah. A nearby Bedouin community left the area this month, citing sustained harassment.
On Wednesday, the Ramallah-based Palestinian health ministry said a 19-year-old had died of wounds sustained after being shot by settlers in Mikhmas.
The Hilltop Youth’s figures reflect a surge in settler violence across the West Bank.
The UN said nearly 700 Palestinians were displaced by settler violence and intimidation in January alone — the highest monthly figure since the Gaza war began in October 2023.
Hilltop Youth is a loose network of hard-line settlers, often made up of small groups of teenagers sometimes overseen by an adult, who establish unauthorized outposts atop West Bank hills.
They are widely accused of using intimidation and violence to push Palestinians out from areas surrounding the outposts.
While most Israeli settlers do not engage in violence, a small but militant fringe has been linked to attacks on Palestinians.
On Tuesday, a group of influential rabbis from settlements in the northern West Bank issued a public letter celebrating settlement expansion while insisting violence was forbidden.
Excluding Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, more than 500,000 Israelis live in West Bank settlements and outposts, which are illegal under international law.
Around three million Palestinians live in the territory, which Israel has occupied since 1967.
The current Israeli government, considered one of the most right wing in the country’s history, has fast-tracked settlement expansion and recognized some outposts.
It approved a record 54 settlements in 2025, according to Israeli NGO Peace Now.
The movement, known for hard-line activism and involvement in efforts to drive Palestinians from parts of the territory, posted the list on its Telegram channel on Wednesday, detailing incidents it claimed responsibility for.
The tally, titled “Monthly summary of the struggle against the Arab enemy in the Holy Land,” lists 29 vehicles set ablaze, 12 homes torched, “40 Arabs injured,” and hundreds of windows smashed and olive trees cut down across 33 towns and villages.
Five of them are in Mikhmas, a village near Ramallah. A nearby Bedouin community left the area this month, citing sustained harassment.
On Wednesday, the Ramallah-based Palestinian health ministry said a 19-year-old had died of wounds sustained after being shot by settlers in Mikhmas.
The Hilltop Youth’s figures reflect a surge in settler violence across the West Bank.
The UN said nearly 700 Palestinians were displaced by settler violence and intimidation in January alone — the highest monthly figure since the Gaza war began in October 2023.
Hilltop Youth is a loose network of hard-line settlers, often made up of small groups of teenagers sometimes overseen by an adult, who establish unauthorized outposts atop West Bank hills.
They are widely accused of using intimidation and violence to push Palestinians out from areas surrounding the outposts.
While most Israeli settlers do not engage in violence, a small but militant fringe has been linked to attacks on Palestinians.
On Tuesday, a group of influential rabbis from settlements in the northern West Bank issued a public letter celebrating settlement expansion while insisting violence was forbidden.
Excluding Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, more than 500,000 Israelis live in West Bank settlements and outposts, which are illegal under international law.
Around three million Palestinians live in the territory, which Israel has occupied since 1967.
The current Israeli government, considered one of the most right wing in the country’s history, has fast-tracked settlement expansion and recognized some outposts.
It approved a record 54 settlements in 2025, according to Israeli NGO Peace Now.
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