Mahmoud Abbas

Mahmoud Abbas مَحْمُود عَبَّاس
President of the Palestinian National Authority
Incumbent
Assumed office  15 January 2005
Prime Minister	Ahmad Qurei Nabil Shaath (Acting) Ahmad Qurei Ismail Haniyeh Khaled Mashal
Preceded by	Rawhi Fattouh (Acting)
Prime Minister of the Palestinian National Authority
In office 19 March 2003 – 6 September 2003
President	Yasser Arafat
Preceded by	Office established
Succeeded by	Ahmad Qurei
Born	26 March 1935 (1935-03-26) (age 75) Safed, Mandate Palestine
Political party	Fatah
Spouse(s)	Amina Abbas
Alma mater	University of Damascus Patrice Lumumba Peoples' Friendship University
Religion	Islam

Mahmoud Abbas (Arabic: مَحْمُود عَبَّاس‎ Maḥmūd ʿAbbās; born 26 March 1935), also known by the kunya Abu Mazen (Arabic: أَبُو مَازِن‎), has been the Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) since 11 November 2004 and became President of the Palestinian National Authority on 15 January 2005 on the Fatah (فتح Fataḥ) ticket.

Elected to serve until 9 January 2009, he unilaterally extended his term for another year and continues in office even after that deadline expired. Rival political party Hamas announced it would not recognise the extension.^[1][2][3] Abbas was chosen as the President of the "State of Palestine" by the Palestine Liberation Organisation's Central Council on 23 November 2008,^[4] a job he had held unofficially since 8 May 2005.^[5] Abbas served as the first Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority from March to October 2003 when he resigned citing lack of support from Israel and the United States as well as "internal incitement" against his government.^[6] Before being named prime minister, Abbas led the PLO's Negotiations Affairs Department.

Biography prior to the death of Yasser Arafat

Abbas was born in Safed in Mandate Palestine.^[7] He and his family fled ^[8] to Syria during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.^[7] He graduated from the University of Damascus before going to Egypt where he studied law.

Later in his life, Abbas entered graduate studies at the Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow, where he earned a Candidate of Sciences degree^[9] (the Soviet equivalent of a PhD). The theme of his PhD dissertation was "The Other Side: The secret relations between Nazism and the leadership of the Zionist movement". His supervising Professor was KGB officer Yevgeny Primakov.

He is married to Amina Abbas; they have three sons, including Yasser Abbas, who was named after former PA leader Yasser Arafat.^[10]

Abbas with then-President of the United States George W. Bush and then-Prime Minister of Israel Ariel Sharon at the Red Sea Summit in Aqaba, Jordan on 4 June 2003.

In the mid-1950s, Abbas became heavily involved in underground Palestinian politics, joining a number of exiled Palestinians in Qatar, where he was Director of Personnel in the emirate's Civil Service. While there, in 1961, he was recruited to become a member of Fatah, founded by Yasser Arafat and a number of other Palestinians in Kuwait in the late 1950s.^[11] At the time, Arafat was establishing the groundwork of Fatah by enlisting wealthy Palestinians in Qatar, Kuwait, and other Persian Gulf States.

Abu Daoud, who planned the 1972 Munich Massacre, the hostage-taking of members of the Israeli team at the Munich Olympic Games which ended with the murder of eleven Israeli athletes and coaches and a West German policeman, wrote that funds for the operation were provided by Abbas, though without knowing what the money would be used for.^[12]

At the same time he has performed diplomatic duties, presenting a moderating face for PLO policies. Abbas was the first PLO official to visit Saudi Arabia after the Gulf War in January 1993 to mend fences with the Gulf countries for the PLO's support of Iraq during the Persian Gulf War. At the 1993 peace accord with Israel, Abbas was the signatory for the PLO on 13 September 1993. He published a memoir, Through Secret Channels: The Road to Oslo (1995).^[13]

Prime minister

Bush, centre, discusses the Middle East peace process with Sharon and Abbas in Aqaba, Jordan, 4 June 2003.

By early 2003, as both Israel and the United States had indicated their refusal to negotiate with Yasser Arafat, Abbas began to emerge as a candidate for a more visible leadership role. As one of the few remaining founding members of Fatah, he had some degree of credibility within the Palestinian cause, and his candidacy was bolstered by the fact that other high-profile Palestinians were for various reasons not suitable (the most notable, Marwan Barghouthi, was under arrest in an Israeli jail after being convicted of multiple murders). Abbas's reputation as a pragmatist garnered him favor with the West and certain elements of the Palestinian legislature, and pressure was soon brought on Arafat to appoint him prime minister. Arafat did so on 19 March 2003. Initially, Arafat attempted to undermine the post of prime minister, but was eventually forced to give Abbas some degree of power.

However, the rest of Abbas's term as prime minister continued to be characterised by numerous conflicts between him and Arafat over the distribution of power between the two. Abbas had often hinted he would resign if not given more control over the administration. In early September 2003, he confronted the Palestinian parliament over this issue. The United States and Israel accused Arafat of constantly undermining Abbas and his government.

In addition, Abbas came into conflict with Palestinian militant groups, notably the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement and Hamas because his pragmatic policies were opposed to their hard-line approach. However, he made it perfectly clear that he was forced to abandon, for the moment, the use of arms against Israeli civilians inside the green line due to its ineffectiveness.^[14]

Initially he pledged not to use force against the militants, in the interest of avoiding a civil war, and instead attempted negotiation. This was partially successful, resulting in a pledge from the two groups to honor a unilateral Palestinian cease-fire. However, continuing violence and Israeli "target killings" of known leaders forced Abbas to pledge a crackdown in order to uphold the Palestinian Authority's side of the Road map for peace. This led to a power struggle with Arafat over control of the Palestinian security services; Arafat refused to release control to Abbas, thus preventing him from using them on the militants.

Abbas resigned as prime minister in October 2003, citing lack of support from Israel and the United States as well as "internal incitement" against his government.^[6]

2005 presidential election

Part of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict and Arab–Israeli conflict series
Israeli–Palestinian Peace Process
Israel       West Bank, Gaza Strip, Golan Heights a
Negotiating Parties
Israel	Palestinians
History
Camp David Accords · Madrid Conference Oslo Accords / Oslo II · Hebron Protocol Wye River / Sharm el-Sheikh Memoranda 2000 Camp David Summit · Taba Summit Road Map · Annapolis Conference
Primary Negotiation Concerns
Final borders  · Israeli settlements  · Refugees (Jewish, Palestinian Arab)  · Security concerns Status of Jerusalem  · Water
Secondary Negotiation Concerns
Antisemitic incitements Israeli West Bank barrier · Jewish state Palestinian political violence Places of worship
Palestine  Current Leaders  Israel
Mahmoud Abbas Salam Fayyad	Shimon Peres Benjamin Netanyahu
International Brokers
Diplomatic Quartet (United Nations, United States, European Union, Russia
Arab League (Egypt, Jordan)  · United Kingdom  · France
Other Proposals
Arab Peace Initiative · Elon Peace Plan Lieberman Plan · Geneva Accord · Hudna Israel's unilateral disengagement plan Israel's realignment plan Peace-orientated projects · Peace Valley  · Isratin · One-state solution · Two-state solution · Three-state solution · Middle East economic integration
Major projects, groups and NGOs
Peace-oriented projects · Peace Valley  · Alliance for Middle East Peace · Aix Group · Peres Center for Peace
^a The Golan Heights are not part of the Israeli-Palestinian process.

After Yasser Arafat's death Mahmoud Abbas was seen, at least by Fatah, as his natural successor.

On 25 November 2004, Abbas was endorsed by Fatah's Revolutionary Council as its preferred candidate for the presidential election, scheduled for 9 January 2005.

On 14 December Abbas called for an end to violence in the Second Intifada and a return to peaceful resistance. Abbas told the Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper that "the use of arms has been damaging and should end". However, he refused to disarm Palestinian militants and use force against groups that Israel, the United States and the European Union designated as terrorist organisations.

With Israeli forces arresting and restricting the movement of other candidates, Hamas' boycott of the election, and his campaign being given 94% of the Palestinian electoral campaign coverage on TV, Abbas' election was virtually ensured,^[15] and on 9 January Abbas was elected with 62% of the vote as President of the Palestinian National Authority.

In his speech, he addressed a crowd of supporters chanting "a million shahids", stating: "I present this victory to the soul of Yasser Arafat and present it to our people, to our martyrs and to 11,000 prisoners". He also called for Palestinian groups to end the use of arms against Israelis.^[16][17]

Presidency

Despite Abbas' call for a peaceful solution, attacks by militant groups continued after his election, in a direct challenge to his authority. The Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement launched a raid in Gaza on 12 January that killed one and wounded three military personnel in Gaza. On 13 January Palestinians from the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, Hamas, and the Popular Resistance Committees launched a suicide attack on the Karni crossing, killing six Israelis. As a result, Israel shut down the damaged terminal and broke off relations with Abbas and the Palestinian Authority, stating that Abbas must now show a gesture of peace by attempting to stop such attacks.

Abbas was formally sworn in as the Chairman of the Palestinian National Authority in a ceremony held on 15 January in the West Bank town of Ramallah.

On 23 January 2005, Israeli radio reported that Abbas had secured a thirty-day ceasefire from Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. On 12 February lone Palestinians attacked Israel settlements and Abbas quickly fired some of his security officers for not stopping the attacks in a ceasefire.

On 9 April 2005, Abbas said that the killing of three Palestinians in southern Gaza by Israeli soldiers is a deliberate violation of the declared ceasefire deal. "This violation is made on purpose," Abbas said in a written statement sent to reporters in the West Bank capital of Ramallah. Abbas made the statement shortly after three Palestinian teenage boys were shot dead by Israeli troops in the southern Gaza town of Rafah. Israel claimed they thought the boys were attempting to smuggle weapons, while Palestinians claimed a group of boys were playing soccer and three of them went to retrieve the ball near the border fence.^[18]

In response to the teens' deaths, Abbas said, "The Palestinian National Authority will not turn a blind eye to the shedding of the blood of our people and our children. We can never accept opening fire at our children who pose no danger at all." Abbas said the Palestinian children "are as precious to their parents as the Israeli children to their parents." Condemning the Israeli shooting as "unjustified", Abbas urged Israel to take serious actions to show commitment to the truce.

Abbas with President Barack Obama in the Oval Office.

In May 2005, Abbas travelled to the White House and met with his American counterpart, George W. Bush. Bush, in return for Abbas' crackdown on terrorists, pledged 50 million USD in aid to the Palestinian Authority and reiterated the US pledge for a free Palestinian state. It was the first direct aid the United States has given to them, as previous donations have gone through non-governmental organizations. The next day Prime Minister Paul Martin of Canada pledged 9.5 million CAD in new aid for judicial reform and housing projects, monitors for the coming Palestinian elections, border management and scholarships for Palestinian refugee women in Lebanon.^[19]

On 25 July 2005 he announced that he would move his office to Gaza until the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops in order to coordinate the Palestinian side of the withdrawal, mediating between the different factions.^[20]

On 9 August 2005 he announced that legislative elections, originally scheduled for 17 July, would take place in January 2006. On 15 January 2006 he declared that despite unrest in Gaza, he would not change the set date of the elections (25 January), unless Israel decided to prevent Arabic speakers in East Jerusalem from voting.^[21] Hamas won a majority of votes in this vote.^[22]

Fatah-Hamas conflict and Gaza crisis

On 16 January 2006, Abbas said that he would not run for office again at the end of his current term.^[23]

On 25 May, Abbas gave Hamas a ten-day deadline to accept the 1967 ceasefire lines.

On 2 June, Abbas again announced that if Hamas did not approve the prisoners' document—which calls for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict according to the 1967 borders—within two days, he would present the initiative as a referendum. This deadline was subsequently extended until 10 June 2006. Hamas spokesmen stated that a change in their stance would not occur, and that Abbas is not constitutionally permitted to call a referendum, especially so soon after the January elections.

Abbas warned Hamas on 8 October 2006 that he would call new legislative elections if it does not accept a coalition government. To recognize Israel was a condition he has presented for a coalition. But it was not clear if Abbas had the power to call new elections.^[22]

On 16 December 2006, Abbas called for new legislative elections, to bring an end to the parliamentary stalemate between Fatah and Hamas in forming a national coalition government.^[24]

Abbas meets with then United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and then Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

On 17 March 2007, a unity government was formed incorporating members of both Hamas and Fatah, with Ismail Haniyeh as Prime Minister and independent politicians taking many key portfolios.

On 14 June 2007, Abbas dissolved the Hamas-led unity government of Haniyeh, declared a state of emergency, and appointed Salam Fayyad in his place. This followed action by Hamas armed forces to take control of Palestinian Authority positions controlled by Fatah militias. The appointment of Fayyad to replace Haniyeh has been challenged as illegal, because under the Palestinian Basic Law, the president may dismiss a sitting prime minister, but may not appoint a replacement without the approval of the Palestinian Legislative Council. According to the law, until a new prime minister is thus appointed, the outgoing prime minister heads a caretaker government. Fayyad's appointment was never placed before, or approved by the Legislative Council.^[25] For this reason, Haniyeh the Hamas prime minister has continued to operate in Gaza, and is recognised by a large number of Palestinians as the legitimate acting prime minister. Anis al-Qasem, a constitutional lawyer who drafted the Basic Law, is among those who publicly declared Abbas' appointment of Fayyad to be illegal.^[26]

On 18 June 2007, the European Union promised to resume direct aid to the Palestinian Authority, Abbas dissolved the National Security Council, a sticking point in the defunct unity government with Hamas.^[27] That same day, the United States decided to end its fifteen-month embargo on the Palestinian Authority and resume aid, attempting to strengthen Abbas's West Bank government.^[28] A day later, the Fatah Central Committee cut off all ties and dialogue with Hamas, pending the return of Gaza.^[29]

On 2 March 2008, Abbas stated he was suspending peace talks with Israel, while Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert vowed to press on with military operations against militants who have been launching home-made rockets into southern Israel.^[30]

On 20 May 2008, Abbas stated he would resign from his office if the current round of peace talks had not yielded an agreement in principle "within six months". He also stated that the current negotiations were, in effect, deadlocked: "So far, we have not reached an agreement on any issue. Any report indicating otherwise is simply not true."^[31]

On 9 January 2009, Abbas term as president, at least as he was originally elected, ended. Abbas extended his term for another year, stating the Basic Law gave him the right to do so, so he could align the next presidential and parliamentary elections. Pointing to the Palestinian constitution, Hamas disputes the validity of this move, and considers Abbas' term to have ended, in which case Abdel Aziz Duwaik, Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council has become acting president.^[3][32][33]

Relations with foreign leaders

In May 2009, he welcomed Pope Benedict XVI to the West Bank, who supported Abbas' goal of a Palestinian State.^[34]

Also in May of 2009, Abbas made a visit to Canada, where he met with foreign affairs minister Lawrence Cannon and Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

In February 2010, Abbas visited Japan for the third time as Palestinian President. In this visit he met Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama. He also visited Hiroshima, the first such visit by a Palestinian leader, and spoke about the suffering of Hiroshima, which he compared to the suffering of the Palestinians.^[35]

Doctoral dissertation

Relations between Zionism and Nazism : 1933 - 1945 is the title of Mahmoud Abbas' CandSc thesis, completed in 1982 at the Patrice Lumumba University, and defended at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Soviet Academy of Sciences under the title "The secret connection between the Nazis and the leaders of the Zionist Movement". It discussed topics such as the Haavara Agreement, by which the Third Reich agreed with the Jewish Agency to facilitate Jewish emigration to Palestine.^[9][37] Some content of his thesis has been considered as Holocaust denial by critics, especially the parts disputing the accepted number of deaths in the Holocaust as well as the accusations that Zionist agitation was the cause of the Holocaust ^[38][39] a charge that he denies.^[40]

Quotes

• "There is absolutely no substitution for dialogue." (2003)
• "The armed struggle necessitates certain conditions and opportunities that do not exist for us in Palestine. We cannot equate what is happening in Palestine with what is going on Lebanon or Algeria. Therefore, military activities under these circumstances and means are ineffective. For this reason, we stated that we have no choice but to stop it [military activities] for a year, which is not a submission from our point of view. As long as the circumstances are not equivalent." (A-Sharq Al-Awsat, 3 March 2003)^[14]
• "The little jihad is over, and now we have the bigger jihad - the bigger battle is achieving security and economic growth" (2005)^[41]
• "From here [the Gaza withdrawal], our people begin the march towards establishing an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital"^[42]
• "Today we are visitors to the airport (referring to Yasser Arafat International Airport), tomorrow we will come here as travellers." (19 August 2005)
• “His Holiness was moved to receive this accolade from the people of Bethlehem and paid special attention to the message of the passport.” On giving the Bethlehem Passport to Pope Benedict XVI. The citation refers to "all people who uphold a just and open society."^[43]
• "I renew my commitment to continuing the road he [Arafat] began and for which he made a lot of sacrifices, until the Palestinian flag flies from the walls, minarets and churches of Jerusalem." (2005)^[44]
• "A Jewish state, what is that supposed to mean? You can call yourselves as you like, but I don't accept it and I say so publicly."(April 27, 2009)^[45][46]
• "I will never allow a single Israeli to live among us on Palestinian land"^[47]

References

External links

• Bush pledges $50 million to Palestinian Authority, CNN (26 May 2005)
• I Don't Have a Magic Wand, Der Spiegel (21 February 2005)
• Palestinian Head Meets Barghouti, BBC News (26 November 2004)
• Someone Was Going to Kill Newsweek Interview of Mahmoud Abbas (21 June2004 issue)
• Profile: Mahmoud Abbas, BBC News (4 September 2003)
• Abbas: No Force Against Arab Militants, AP (9 June 2003)
• Chairman Abbas' address to the 63rd session of the United Nations General Assembly (26 September 2008)
• Mahmoud Abbas at the Open Directory Project

Presidents of the Palestinian National Authority Yasser Arafat · Rawhi Fattouh  · Mahmoud Abbas

Prime Ministers of the Palestinian National Authority Mahmoud Abbas · Ahmad Qurei · Nabil Shaath (acting) · Ahmad Qurei · Salam Fayyad (West Bank)/Ismail Haniyeh (Gaza Strip)