Israel Matzav

Abu Bluff under pressure to 'remove' Fayyad after Fatah victories in student elections

The Fatah faction in the 'Palestinian Authority' is urging 'moderate' 'Palestinian' President Mahmoud Abbas Abu Mazen to fire Salam Fayyad and replace him with a Fatah hack. The only small problem is that the 'Palestinians' donors claim they won't go along with that idea.

“President Abbas is facing growing pressure to replace Fayyad with a Fatah prime minister,” said a source close to the PA president. “The recent victories that Fatah scored in university elections show that Fatah continues to enjoy the support of a majority of Palestinians.”

Fayyad, who is not a member of Fatah, heads a list called Third Way that won only two seats in the January 2006 parliamentary election.

Fayyad’s refusal to deliver the letter to Netanyahu deeply embarrassed Abbas, said a Fatah official in Ramallah.

In a bid to ease tensions, Abbas and Fayyad met for three hours last Tuesday, the official added. The official refused to say whether the two men managed to solve the crisis during the meeting, which he described as “friendly and positive.”

The dispute between Abbas and Fayyad also revolves around the PA president’s declared intention to carry out a cabinet reshuffle, the official said.

According to the Fatah official, Abbas faces pressure from his supporters to take away the Finance Ministry from Fayyad.

Western donor countries have warned Abbas not to remove Fayyad or cut his powers, a Western diplomat based in Israel told The Jerusalem Post last week. The diplomat said the donors have made it clear to Abbas that any measure against Fayyad would affect international funding for the PA.

The donors have threatened a lot of things, and we've all seen how they have not followed through on those threats. If Abu Mazen were to replace Fayyad, there might be a cutoff by aid would surely be restored by November 7. At some point, maybe a few months from now, Abu Mazen will decide to take that chance.

What could go wrong?

Labels: Abu Mazen, Fatah, Palestinian Authority donors, Salam Fayyad

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 8:52 AM