RAMALLAH: Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas resigned Saturday as head of the Palestine Liberation Organization’s Executive Committee in a bid to force new elections for the top body, an official said.
Wassel Abu Yussef said that more than half of the 18-member committee had also stepped down.
“The resignation of the president of the executive committee Mahmud Abbas and more than half of its members has created a legal vacuum, and therefore the Palestine National Council has been asked to meet in one month to elect a new executive committee,” Yussef told AFP.
Yussef added, however, that the resignations will take effect only when the PNC meets. The PNC, or Palestinian parliament, has 740 members who live in the Palestinian territories and in the diaspora. It has not met in nearly 20 years.
Yussef said that before the resignations were announced, the executive committee elected chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat as its secretary general. That move came after Abbas suspended another key member, Yasser Abed Rabbo, as secretary general. It was not immediately clear why Rabbo had been sidelined.
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Abbas quits PLO leadership ahead of internal election
Abbas quits PLO leadership ahead of internal election
Palestinian factions offer support for Gaza technocratic committee
- Palestinian National Transitional Committee to administer Gaza backed by presidency along with Hamas and Islamic Jihad
CAIRO: The majority of Palestinian factions and the presidency offered their support for the Palestinian technocratic committee meant to govern Gaza, after mediator Egypt announced on Wednesday that all parties had agreed on its members.
In a statement, Palestinian factions including Hamas and Islamic Jihad said they had agreed “to support the mediators’ efforts in forming the Palestinian National Transitional Committee to administer the Gaza Strip, while providing the appropriate environment” for it to begin its work.
The Ramallah-based Palestinian presidency also announced its support in official media, with a source from the office telling AFP the statement “reflects the position of the Fatah movement because President (Mahmud) Abbas is also the head of Fatah.”
In a statement, Palestinian factions including Hamas and Islamic Jihad said they had agreed “to support the mediators’ efforts in forming the Palestinian National Transitional Committee to administer the Gaza Strip, while providing the appropriate environment” for it to begin its work.
The Ramallah-based Palestinian presidency also announced its support in official media, with a source from the office telling AFP the statement “reflects the position of the Fatah movement because President (Mahmud) Abbas is also the head of Fatah.”
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