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Al-Sheikh’s Appointment as PLO Secretary-General Brings Him Closer to Succeeding Abbas

Hussein Al-Sheikh (left) shakes hands with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken upon his arrival in Ramallah last March (EPA)
Hussein Al-Sheikh (left) shakes hands with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken upon his arrival in Ramallah last March (EPA)
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Al-Sheikh’s Appointment as PLO Secretary-General Brings Him Closer to Succeeding Abbas

Hussein Al-Sheikh (left) shakes hands with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken upon his arrival in Ramallah last March (EPA)
Hussein Al-Sheikh (left) shakes hands with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken upon his arrival in Ramallah last March (EPA)

President Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday named Hussein Al-Sheikh secretary-general of the Palestine Liberation Organization’s (PLO) Executive Committee.

Al-Sheikh has served as the Minister of Civil Affairs and member of the Fatah Central Committee.

Abbas’ decision is effective as of May 25.

The position had been held for years by the late Saeb Erekat, who was also the PLO's chief negotiator in talks with Israel.

Al-Sheikh enjoys close ties with Abbas and his appointment comes as no surprise. He was first handed a seat on the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Executive Committee at a February conference the organization.

Renewing leadership was one of the most important outcomes of the conference, setting a prelude to a future stage related to who will succeed Abbas.

Before this meeting, the Fatah movement had determined its options and decided to push Hussein al-Sheikh to the Executive Committee to succeed Erekat and to keep Azzam al-Ahmad in his position alongside Abbas.

Fatah, formerly the Palestinian National Liberation Movement, is a Palestinian nationalist social-democratic political party and the largest faction of the confederated multi-party PLO and the second-largest party in the Palestinian Legislative Council.

Al-Sheikh’s appointment was Abbas’ personal decision and it brings him closer to succeeding the Palestinian president.

One of Abbas’s closest aides, al-Sheikh has long played a key role in Palestinian politics. In recent years he has taken over various diplomatic duties, often meeting with American and European diplomats, and flying to summits in Cairo with Abbas.

He also enjoys close ties with his Israeli counterparts. Along with PA intelligence chief Majed Faraj, al-Sheikh attended every meeting between Abbas and senior Israeli officials over the past year.

However, Sheikh also has little public legitimacy, having never been democratically elected to a senior position.

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MSF Suspends Operations at Key Hospital in Sudan's Capital

FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)
FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)
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MSF Suspends Operations at Key Hospital in Sudan's Capital

FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)
FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)

Medical aid agency MSF said on Friday it has been forced to suspend its activities at one of the few remaining hospitals in southern Khartoum due to repeated attacks, cutting off yet another lifeline for those who remain in the Sudanese capital.
War has been raging in Sudan since April 2023, sparked by a power struggle between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) ahead of a planned transition to civilian rule, triggering the world's largest displacement and hunger crisis.
The hospital, which lies in territory controlled by the RSF, helped treat the victims of frequent airstrikes by the Sudanese Armed Forces, as well as hundreds of malnourished women and children in an area where two neighborhoods have been judged at risk of famine, reported Reuters.
"In the 20 months MSF teams have worked alongside hospital staff and volunteers, Bashair Hospital has experienced repeated incidents of armed fighters entering the hospital with weapons and threatening medical staff, often demanding fighters be treated before other patients," MSF said in a statement.
"Despite extensive engagements with all stakeholders, these attacks have continued in recent months. MSF has now taken the very difficult decision to suspend all medical activities in the hospital."
The fighting in Sudan has cut off up to 80% of hospitals in conflict areas, where millions who cannot afford to escape the violence remain. Civilians face frequent air and artillery fire and hunger as supplies are blocked by both warring parties and prices skyrocket.
Medical facilities, including MSF-supported ones that have suspended operations, have frequently come under attack by RSF soldiers demanding treatment or looting supplies. Bashair Hospital has served more than 25,000 people, MSF said, including 9,000 hurt by blasts, gunshot wounds, and other violence.
"Sometimes dozens of people arrived at the hospital at the same time after shelling or airstrikes on residential areas and markets," MSF said in the statement, citing an incident on Sunday where an airstrike one kilometer away drove 50 people to the emergency room, 12 of them already dead.