• PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas unexpectedly announced at the Arab League summit in Cairo his decision to appoint a deputy and reinstate senior Fatah officials who had been expelled from the movement.
• Abbas was forced to yield to regional and international pressures. According to Fatah sources, the United States is pushing for Majed Faraj to be appointed to the position, while Abbas prefers to appoint his close associate, Hussein Al-Sheikh.
   

The PLO’s Central Council is set to convene in mid-month to approve the creation of the new position of Palestinian Authority (PA) Deputy Chairman. The council serves as the body linking the Executive Committee and the Palestinian National Council (PNC).

Senior Fatah officials claim that the United States is pressuring the PA to appoint Palestinian General Intelligence Chief Majed Faraj as the PA’s deputy chairman. Faraj is closely linked to the CIA and maintains extensive security cooperation.

Faraj’s opponents within Fatah argue that the candidate must be a member of the movement’s Central Committee or the PLO Executive Committee—positions Faraj does not hold. Moreover, Fatah’s Central Committee members refuse to add new names to the committee, making it difficult for Faraj to be appointed.