The chief spokesman of the Fatah movement, Munir Aljagub, confirmed on Sunday that Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas had appointed Mohammad Shtayyeh, a member of Fatah central committee and Abbas’ long-time ally, as the new Palestinian prime minister.
“Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is appointing Mohammad Shtayyeh, a member of the Fatah Central Committee, as the next prime minister”, Aljagub told Sputnik.
Earlier this week, Shtayyeh’s candidacy has been approved by the Fatah central committee, local media reported. A Fatah source also told Sputnik about the appointment on Friday.
Various reports have also suggested that Abbas would seek to appoint a Fatah member as the head of the government to isolate the rival Hamas movement, which is controlling the Gaza Strip.
The ally of Abbas will replace Rami Hamdallah, whose apolitical cabinet of technocrats was created in hopes of regaining control over the Gaza Strip, where the Islamist opposition has been ruling for more than ten years. Hamdallah’s cabinet resigned in January, acting as the interim government since then.