Several Scenarios for Safe Transition of Palestinian Presidency after Abbas

 Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas gestures as he delivers a speech in the West Bank city of Bethlehem. Reuters
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas gestures as he delivers a speech in the West Bank city of Bethlehem. Reuters
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Several Scenarios for Safe Transition of Palestinian Presidency after Abbas

 Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas gestures as he delivers a speech in the West Bank city of Bethlehem. Reuters
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas gestures as he delivers a speech in the West Bank city of Bethlehem. Reuters

Ramallah- Hamas movement has ignited the battle over the early succession of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas by announcing that the speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council would assume his position if Abbas could not carry out his duties.

"The Palestinian basic law stipulates that if the president's health deteriorates, if he dies or can not carry out his job, then the president of the Legislative Council (parliament) should assume his position for 60 days in preparation for holding elections," said Ahmad Bahar, a leader in the Islamic Movement that governs Gaza Strip.

Bahar recalled a similar incident in 2004, when former President Yasser Arafat passed away and was replaced by Speaker of the Parliament - back then Rouhi Fattouh. He stressed that the National Council has nothing to do with this matter.

Bahar's statements came amid rising fears of a vacuum in the Palestinian political system after Abbas, especially following a slight setback in his health that demanded him to do some medical tests in Ramallah.

While Hamas says that Speaker of the Legislative Council Aziz Duwaik, pro-Hamas, will succeed Abbas, Fatah is preparing for a totally different plan and is discussing different scenarios, but it will first elect a new executive committee for the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).

The National Council will convene a meeting at any time before the end of the year to elect a new Executive Committee for the PLO. Fatah officials say the election of a new committee comes within the framework of renewing Palestinian legitimacy. Yet, observers say that it also paves the way for a safe and smooth transition of power.

They are not only Palestinian concerns but also Arab as well as Israeli. The Israeli security services have put forward several post-Abbas scenarios.

It is believed that Fatah movement will elect one of its members in the Central Committee for membership of the Executive Committee of the PLO, and this will be, according to the Fathawi Khales’s concept, the closest person nominated to succeed Abbas.

Notably, there is still no vice president for Abbas since the basic constitution of the Palestinian Authority (PA) does not include the position of vice president, but there is a deputy to the president of Fatah movement, who is Mahmoud al-Aloul, the former governor of Nablus.

The other scenario might lead to reconciliation with Hamas and carrying out new public elections.

With this legal dispute and with the absence of a vice president, fears of a vacuum in the Palestinian political system are growing.

These concerns are not only limited to Palestinians but also to Arabs and Israelis as the Israeli security services put several scenarios for the post-Abbas era.



Trump Says Gaza Ceasefire Possible this Week or Next

US President Donald Trump listens to opening remarks, on the day he hosts a lunch for African representatives of Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania, and Senegal in the State Dining Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., US, July 9, 2025. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
US President Donald Trump listens to opening remarks, on the day he hosts a lunch for African representatives of Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania, and Senegal in the State Dining Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., US, July 9, 2025. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
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Trump Says Gaza Ceasefire Possible this Week or Next

US President Donald Trump listens to opening remarks, on the day he hosts a lunch for African representatives of Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania, and Senegal in the State Dining Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., US, July 9, 2025. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
US President Donald Trump listens to opening remarks, on the day he hosts a lunch for African representatives of Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania, and Senegal in the State Dining Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., US, July 9, 2025. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

US President Donald Trump said there is a "very good chance" of a ceasefire in Gaza this week or next, after meeting Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday for the second time in two days to discuss the situation.

"We have a chance this week or next week," Trump told reporters.

Israel's military chief said on Wednesday "conditions have been created" for the advancement of a hostage release deal in Gaza, as indirect negotiations were under way between Israel and Hamas.

"We have achieved many significant results, we have caused great damage to the governance and military capabilities of Hamas," armed forces chief Eyal Zamir said in a televised speech.

"Thanks to the operational power that we have demonstrated, the conditions have been created to advance a deal to release the hostages."

Netanyahu said on Wednesday that his meeting with Trump focused on freeing the hostages held in Gaza, and stressed his determination to "eliminate" the military and governmental capabilities of Hamas.