Abbas chooses respected academic as Palestinian PM

RAMALLAH, Palestinian Territories: Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas has named respected academic Rami Hamdallah as his new prime minister who will be tasked with forming the next Ramallah-based government.
The nomination of Hamdallah, who was widely expected to tread a similar path to his predecessor Salam Fayyad, was hailed by Washington and also welcomed by Israeli pundits who described him as “a good man” and a moderate pragmatist vis-a-vis the Jewish state.
His appointment is seen as an interim measure until Abbas can piece together a long-promised unity government as laid out in a 2011 unity agreement between his Fatah faction and its political rival, the Islamist Hamas movement.
News of the nomination was made public late on Sunday on the last day of a deadline to find a successor to Fayyad, who resigned in mid-April following months of tension with Abbas.
“President Abbas has asked me to form a new government, and I have accepted,” Hamdallah told AFP.
Under Palestinian Basic Law, he now has an initial three weeks to form a new government, which can then be extended for another two if necessary.
The 54-year-old, considered close to the ruling Fatah movement, is the head of Al-Najah University and secretary general of the Central Elections Commission.
He was born in Anabta village near the northern town of Tulkarem and has a doctorate in applied linguistics from Lancaster University in northern England.
Speaking to the official Voice of Palestine radio on Monday, Hamdallah said he expected to be in office until mid-August, when a unity government is due to be created.
“The new government will be a continuation of the last government, most of the ministers will continue to serve in their positions,” he told the station, saying his new cabinet was “part of the reconciliation efforts.”
“I hope that by August 14, president Abbas will form a new government according to the agreement between Hamas and Fatah,” he said.
At a meeting in Cairo on May 14, Fatah, which dominates the Ramallah-based government, and Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, agreed on a three-month deadline for establishing a national unity government and setting a date for elections.
Under terms of the as-yet unfulfilled reconciliation agreement of 2011, the two movements were to have set up an interim cabinet of technocrats to prepare for elections, after which they would establish a national unity government.
But the deal stalled over persistent in-fighting over the makeup of the caretaker cabinet.
“Rami Hamdallah is a national patriot and an independent and we hope that he can lead the (new) government for three months to give us an opportunity to form a united government with Hamas,” said Amin Maqbul, head of the Fatah Revolutionary Council.
“The appointment of Hamdallah was necessary before (Fayyad’s term in office) expired on June 2 after we were not able to reach an agreement with Hamas,” he told AFP.
“We hope we can reach an agreement with Hamas soon about a unity government.”
Washington, which is deeply involved in efforts to revive the long-dormant peace process, hailed Hamdallah’s nomination. Secretary of State John Kerry said it came “at a moment of challenge, which is also an important moment of opportunity.”
Israeli officials refused to comment, insisting it was a purely internal Palestinian issue, but pundits hailed the choice of Hamdallah.
“Israeli officials see Rami Hamdallah as a moderate and a pragmatist who will follow the same political line as his predecessor,” army radio said, calling him someone who “knows how to speak to the West.”
“Rami Hamdallah is close to Mahmud Abbas, he won’t overshadow him. He is more of a manager and not really a political leader, whereas Salam Fayyad appeared more and more like a rival to Abbas,” it said.
Unnamed Israeli sources quoted by Haaretz newspaper said it was unlikely he would be able to shape the political map.
“Hamdallah is considered moderate and pragmatic as far as Israel and the peace process goes but it is doubtful that he will have any influence in the foreseeable future,” it said, noting also that he had “developed professional contacts with many Israelis” over the years.
But Barak Ravid, the paper’s diplomatic correspondent, said he had taken on a Sisyphean task, assuming overnight “the most ungrateful job in the West Bank.
“His chances of success are so low that some would say agreeing to take the post is akin to taking a suicide mission.”