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Friedman’s Talk About 'Next Leader' Sparks Palestinian Anger

US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman - Reuters
US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman - Reuters
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Friedman’s Talk About 'Next Leader' Sparks Palestinian Anger

US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman - Reuters
US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman - Reuters

The Palestinian presidency rejected what it described as the US “policy of threat, pressure and intimidation” against Palestinian President, in response to US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman, who said that the US administration might consider Mohammad Dahlan, who was dismissed from Fatah Movement, as a future leader for the Palestinians.

“The policy of threats, constant pressure, and attempts to intimidate President Mahmoud Abbas and the leadership will be doomed to failure,” Presidential spokesperson Nabil Abu Rudeina said on Thursday.

“Only our Palestinian people can choose their leader according to the democratic foundations laid by the Palestine Liberation Organization,” he added.

Friedman’s comments, quoted by Israel Hayom, sparked anger and controversy, which forced the Israeli daily to edit the ambassador’s statements.

The ambassador reportedly said that the US administration was thinking about Dahlan becoming the leader of the Palestinians. But the newspaper later revised the article, quoting Friedman as replying to a question on Dahlan: “We’re not thinking about it,” we have no desire to engineer the Palestinian leadership.

Member of the Executive Committee of the PLO, Ahmed Majdalani, warned of US efforts to harm Abbas, similar to what happened with the late leader Yasser Arafat, in order to pass the so-called deal of the century.

“The coming stage will witness more US punitive measures against the Palestinian leadership,” Majdalani told Voice of Palestine radio station.

Hamas leader Sami Abu Zuhri said for his part: “The statements of the US ambassador about the desire to appoint Mohammad Dahlan as head of the Authority represent an unacceptable interference in internal affairs, and there will be no Palestinian president except through the Palestinian will.”

In response, Dahlan said on his Facebook page: “I have all faith that Palestine is in dire need of renewing the legitimacy of all Palestinian leaderships and institutions. This will only be achieved through comprehensive and transparent national elections.”

“I hope no one will fall into the trap of such carefully engineered tactics,” he continued. “Let us work together to restore our national unity and agree on our national constants and the means to achieve them.”

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Sudanese Stakeholders Hold Roundtable Talks in Geneva

A previous meeting of the coordination of Tagadum with the officials of the African Mechanism in Addis Ababa. (Tagadum on Facebook)
A previous meeting of the coordination of Tagadum with the officials of the African Mechanism in Addis Ababa. (Tagadum on Facebook)
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Sudanese Stakeholders Hold Roundtable Talks in Geneva

A previous meeting of the coordination of Tagadum with the officials of the African Mechanism in Addis Ababa. (Tagadum on Facebook)
A previous meeting of the coordination of Tagadum with the officials of the African Mechanism in Addis Ababa. (Tagadum on Facebook)

Geneva has hosted a third “roundtable” of meetings involving Sudanese political and civil groups aimed at bridging the gap between the country’s warring parties. These talks, coordinated by the French organization Promediation, follow similar meetings held previously in Cairo and Geneva. The primary goals are to negotiate a ceasefire and facilitate humanitarian aid to civilians.

The two-day meetings, which began on Monday, include representatives from the Coordination of Democratic Civil Forces (Tagadum), the pro-army Democratic Bloc coalition, and armed movements aligned with the bloc. However, some groups have announced their boycott of the meetings.

The Democratic Bloc has shown conflicting stances on attending the Geneva talks. Mohammed Zakaria, spokesperson for the bloc and a member of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), announced his group’s decision not to participate.

Omar Khalafallah, a leader in the Democratic Unionist Party and another bloc spokesperson, refuted Zakaria’s statement, insisting that the bloc would attend the meetings to promote a national vision.

A source within the Democratic Bloc told Asharq Al-Awsat that the meetings revealed significant internal divisions in the coalition. The JEM, led by current Finance Minister Jibril Ibrahim, appears to be charting its own course, which the source described as a form of defection.

In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, Sharif Mohammed Osman, a leader in Tagadum and the political secretary of the Sudanese Congress Party, explained that the meetings seek to achieve consensus on ending the war through negotiated solutions, starting with a humanitarian truce to ensure aid delivery and the opening of safe corridors.

These measures are considered preliminary steps toward a ceasefire and a peaceful resolution to the conflict, he underlined.

A wide array of civilian leaders are participating in the talks, including key figures from Tagadum, such as Sudanese Congress Party leader Omar Al-Dukair, Federal Gathering Party leader Babiker Faisal, and head of the Sudan Liberation Movement – Transitional Council Al-Hadi Idris.

Osman expressed optimism that the participants would issue a unified final statement addressing the peaceful resolution of the war and agreeing on a humanitarian truce to facilitate aid delivery.

In October, Cairo hosted a similar meeting, which resulted in a final statement signed by the participating groups, except for the Sudan Liberation Movement – Minni Minnawi faction and the JEM – Jibril Ibrahim faction, which refused to endorse the Cairo declaration despite attending the discussions.

Promediation, a French organization supported by the French and Swiss foreign ministries, has played a consistent role in Sudanese affairs. Since June 2022, it has organized roundtable discussions, initially focusing on negotiations between Darfuri armed movements before expanding its scope to include Sudanese political and civil forces in the wake of the war.