When was PA established and what is its purpose?
Established in the mid-1990s as an interim body on the path to an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital, the Palestinian Authority (PA) is the governing body that oversees the Israeli-occupied West Bank areas.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during a meeting earlier this year. Photo: ABC
The PA was the result of the Oslo Accords between the Israeli government and the PLO, then led by the late Yasser Arafat. Today, those accords have fallen apart as Israel expands settlements and bypasses roads in the West Bank and East Jerusalem in a de facto annexation of territory that should have been part of a hypothetical Palestinian state. The last round of talks collapsed in 2014.
The PA is governed by Fatah, a secular political party founded by the Palestinian community after the Nakba of 1948. Fatah is also the driving force behind the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), a coalition of several political parties that claims to represent Palestinians worldwide.
Are PA members elected?
The PA has an elected president and a unicameral legislative assembly (parliament) called the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC). However, there have been no presidential elections since the current leader, Mahmoud Abbas, was elected in 2005, and no parliamentary elections since 2006.
The PLC has not convened since 2007, when President Abbas's Fatah party clashed with another Palestinian political organization, Hamas, leading to a brief civil war between the two sides. President Abbas has led the PA by decree since then.
When President Abbas's four-year term ended in 2009, Hamas opposed his stay in office. Abbas argued that he should stay in office for another year so that presidential and parliamentary elections could be held at the same time. To this day, he remains President of the State of Palestine.
Who is President Abbas?
Mahmoud Abbas, now 87, succeeded the late leader Yasser Arafat as President of the PA. Many Palestinians believe that Abbas, also known as Abu Mazen, is a reformer who will bring peace, according to Al Jazeera.
The arrival of President Abbas has also been welcomed by Israel and the West, which see him as the best guarantor of stability in the region. The leader tends to be moderate and does not advocate violence.
What is the relationship between PA and Hamas?
Today, the political and territorial divide between Mr Abbas's Fatah party and Hamas, based in the West Bank and Gaza respectively, has deepened.
Fatah's Azzam al-Ahmad (right) and Hamas' Saleh al-Arouri shake hands after signing a reconciliation agreement in Cairo in October 2017. Photo: AFP
The two territories have evolved into distinctly different entities, with Fatah’s PA gaining international recognition and support, while Gaza, led by Hamas, which is viewed as a terrorist organization by the West, has become increasingly isolated. Egypt has helped Israel enforce a land, sea and air blockade of the Gaza Strip for the past 17 years.
An attempt to form a Government of National Accord to unite the two groups in 2014 failed. Three years later, a reconciliation deal that would have seen Hamas hand over administrative control of Gaza has been stymied by disputes over disarmament.
In 2022, delegates from 14 Palestinian factions came together in Algiers (the capital of Algeria) to sign a new reconciliation agreement, with plans to hold parliamentary elections by the end of 2023 - which would be the first elections in 17 years.
What influence does the PA have on the war in the Gaza Strip?
Although both the PA and Hamas accept an Israeli state within the borders established in 1967, the PA chooses to negotiate peace with Israel to resolve territorial disputes. Hamas, on the other hand, chooses armed struggle to force Israel to withdraw from all occupied lands.
The West Bank (top right corner of the map) with red patches is the land controlled by the Palestinian Authority. Photo: Wikipedia
Because of their opposing views and policies, the PA has no influence on the current developments in the Gaza Strip. But what would happen if Hamas were attacked so severely that it had to withdraw from the Gaza Strip? Would the PA, or more precisely the Fatah Party members who dominate this government, send people back to Gaza to regain influence?
Those questions will have to wait for time to answer. But according to observers, only unity among factions can create the fighting strength for the Palestinians. Because looking back at the Palestinians' persistent journey over the past decades, it can be seen that internal divisions can be seen as a major reason why they are increasingly facing more and more difficulties in the face of Israeli pressure as well as in protecting their legitimate rights.
The PA also plays a central role in ensuring that the aftershocks from the attacks do not spill over into the West Bank. US and Israeli officials assess that the potential for violence in the West Bank is the most pressing of the many challenges ahead.
Nguyen Khanh
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