Many See Palestinian Leadership Reshuffle as Simply a Cosmetic Move To Please Washington

Under pressure from Washington, the Palestinian Authority is reshuffling its leadership — a move that is unlikely to satisfy Israel and may not even suffice for the Biden administration. Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh announced his resignation Monday, along with the rest of the PA government. The decision follows President Biden’s call for a “revitalized” authority to lead a Palestinian state that would take charge of post-war Gaza.Prime Minister Netanyahu is adamant that establishing a Palestinian state now would reward Hamas for its October 7 atrocities, and that the Israel Defense Force must remain in Gaza after the war to protect against future attacks. As Ramallah is making its cosmetic leadership changes, it is also sending representatives to a Moscow summit on Thursday, promoting unity between warring Palestinian factions, including Hamas. The revived Palestinian Authority will “require new governmental and political arrangements that take into account the emerging reality in the Gaza Strip, the national unity talks, and the urgent need for an inter-Palestinian consensus,” Mr. Shtayyeh said in announcing his resignation. President Abbas, who has led the Palestinian Authority since his election to a four-year term 18 years ago, is designating a confidante, a former economy minister, Mohammed Mustafa, as new prime minister. Entering office after the war’s end, Mr. Mustafa is said set to develop a Gaza reconstruction plan, supervised by the World Bank.“The entire thing is a farce,” a vice president at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, Jonathan Schanzer, tells the Sun. “The key figure, Abbas, is remaining in place, and Mustafa is his irredeemably corrupt crony and friend.” Anyone thinking the reshuffling represents change is “not serious about a reform,” he adds. Washington is promoting a new, technocratic Palestinian-led government to preside over the future Palestinian state. “Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited under a single governance structure, ultimately under a revitalized Palestinian Authority,” Mr. Biden wrote in the Washington Post last November. “The establishment of an independent Palestinian state is the best pathway to enduring peace and security for Palestinians and Israelis alike,” Secretary Blinken said two weeks ago at Ramallah. Following a meeting with Mr. Abbas, the secretary touted the “benefits of revitalizing the Palestinian Authority.”Yet, to date neither Mr. Abbas nor any of his top lieutenants have denounced the October 7 terrorist attack on Israel. The Palestinian Authority is yet to rescind its financial support for families of terrorists.With Ramallah so far failing to do any of these, or to seriously combat terrorism for that matter, Israel could hardly consider the PA “revitalized,” a former head of the IDF intelligence research division, Yossi Kuperwassser, says. “That some people change positions would not make too much difference,” he tells the Sun. “The Americans would agree to much less reform than Israel would, but they can’t accept just anything,” Mr. Kuperwasser, now with the Jerusalem Center of Public Affairs, says. “Even they would be hard-pressed to accept these changes, especially if Hamas is allowed in, even as ‘technocrats.’” Mr. Biden wrote that “the Palestinian people deserve a state of their own and a future free from Hamas.” Yet, all of the Palestinian factions, including Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, plan to go to Moscow on Thursday, Russia’s deputy foreign minister, Mikhail Bogdanov, said. Shortly after the October 7 massacre, a delegation headed by Hamas’s senior leader, Moussa Abu Marzouk, arrived at Moscow. Mr. Abu Marzouk is expected to lead the Hamas delegation to the Kremlin-led summit. A Hamas ally, Qatar, is expected to send a representative as well. Through the years, the 88-year-old Mr. Abbas has steadfastly eliminated any potential challenger to his leadership. Now, top critics he has exiled are jockeying for position. A former Fatah leader in Gaza, Mohammed Dahlan, now lives at Abu Dhabi and is a top adviser to the United Arab Emirates president, Mohamed bin Zayed. He is reportedly promoting a former Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations, Nasser al-Kidwa, who is a nephew of Yasser Arafat, the late PLO leader, to replace Mr. Abbas.Meanwhile, Democrats accuse Mr. Netanyahu of undermining Mr. Biden’s vision for a post-war Mideast. The Israeli premier is “doubling down on stupid” by opposing a Palestinian state, Governor Newsom of California told NBC Sunday. “This is not my personal position, this is the position of the people of Israel,” Mr. Netanyahu told Fox News Monday. The country is “united as never before in saying that what we will not accept is a Palestinian state that endangers Israel.”

Many See Palestinian Leadership Reshuffle as Simply a Cosmetic Move To Please Washington

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