The Fatah movement, which controls the Palestinian Authority has been riled up by rumors of potential successors to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, Arab news outlet Rai al-Youm reported Sunday.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
Abbas, 85, elected for a four-year term in 2005, has been facing growing opposition to his grip on power. Despite his failing health he has refused to name a successor and Middle East experts have warned that sans a clear plan for the post-Abbas era, the Palestinian Authority could easily fall into chaos, which would serve Hamas interests, as the Gaza Strip-based terrorist group seeks to take over the West Bank as well.
The report named Hussein al-Sheikh, the PA's civil affairs minister, as the next potential PA leader, but Fatah officials have rejected that possibility, saying Marwan Barghouti remains the leading candidate.
Barghouti is serving five life sentences for terrorist attacks during the Second Intifada. It is unclear whether his candidacy is even possible.
Other Arab media reports have also been hedging that Mohammed Dahlan, the former leader of Fatah in Gaza and once a close Abbas ally could make a play for Ramallah's leadership. Fearing Dahlan's growing power, Abbas turned against him and Dahlan was expelled from the West Bank in 2011.
Dahlan, who resided in the United Arab Emirates, is widely seen as a possible contender to replace Abbas, and has often said he would challenge Abbas in the next presidential election.
Abbas, for his part, is in no rush to have the Palestinians go to the polls. He has canceled elections in the PA several times over the past few years, most recently in May 2021. Had the elections taken place it would have been the first time in 15 years that the Palestinian people got to vote on their government.
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
