The Palestinian Authority has entered a new phase of change. Hamas and Israeli delegations are meeting in Cairo and Donald Trump is pushing for peace in the region. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has named his close confidant Hussein al-Sheikh as his deputy and potential successor. The Palestine Liberation Organization office announced the news, a step widely seen as necessary to calm international suspicions about the Palestinian leadership.
Abbas, 89, has led the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and the Palestinian Authority (PA) since the death of veteran leader Yasser Arafat in 2004, but he had for years resisted internal reforms including the appointment of a successor.
Hussein al-Sheikh, born in 1960, is a veteran of the Islamist wing of Fatah, the main faction of the PLO, which was founded by Arafat and is now led by Abbas. He is widely seen as a pragmatist with very close ties to Israel. He was appointed PLO vice-chairman after the organization's executive committee approved his appointment by Abbas.
Reform of the Palestinian Authority, which exercises limited autonomy in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, has been a priority for the United States and Gulf monarchies hoping the body can play a central role in resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Pressure for reform has intensified since the start of the war in Gaza, where the PLO's main Palestinian rival, Hamas, has been fighting Israel for more than 18 months, leaving the small, densely populated territory in ruins.
The United States has promoted the idea of a reformed PA that would govern Gaza after the war. The Gulf monarchies, which are seen as the most likely source of funding for Gaza's post-war reconstruction, also want major reforms of the body. (A2 Televizion)
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