The Palestinian leadership approved the creation of the position of vice president of Mahmoud Abbas, and possibly his successor, on Thursday, a step widely seen as needed to assuage international doubts over Palestinian leadership.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Reuters/Mohammed Torokman
The Palestinian leadership approved the creation of the position of vice president of Mahmoud Abbas, and possibly his successor, on Thursday, a step widely seen as needed to assuage international doubts over Palestinian leadership.
A statement published by state news agency WAFA said 170 members of the Palestinian Central Council, the Palestinians' highest decision-making body, voted in favour of the decision, while one member voted against it and another abstained.
They have not immediately appointed someone to the role. According to the statement, Abbas has the right to assign tasks to the deputy, relieve him of his post, or accept his resignation.
Abbas, 89, has headed the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) and the Palestinian Authority (PA) since the death of veteran leader Yasser Arafat in 2004 but has for years resisted internal reforms, including the naming of a successor.
The Western-backed Palestinian Authority exercises limited rule in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and has not governed Gaza since fighting a civil war with Hamas in 2007.
Reporting by Ali Sawafta and Nidal al-Mughrabi
Israelis will on Wednesday mark three years since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, triggering a military assault that destroyed much of Gaza, where conditions remain dire despite a year-old ceasefire that is meant to halt the war for good.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney will travel to Ankara and Istanbul from October 21 to 23, his office said on Tuesday, in what will be the first dedicated bilateral visit to NATO ally Turkey by a Canadian leader.
Israeli Ambassador Danny Danon said “Three years ago, on October 7th, Hamas tried to break us. They did not.”
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