Mahmoud Abbas appoints Mohammad Mustafa as PM to form new government

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: WAFA
14 Mar 2024 23:44

The president of the Palestinian Authority has issued a decree naming a new prime minister and detailing a set of reforms for his government.

President Mahmoud Abbas and Mohammad Mustafa pose for a commemorative photo in Ramallah, the occupied West Bank, occupied Palestine, on March 14, 2024. (WAFA)

The president of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, named Mohammad Mustafa as the Prime Minister of the PA, the state-run Palestinian news agency WAFA reported on Thursday.

In an 11-point plan, Abbas listed a set of reforms and goals that the Musatafa's government should seek to achieve during its term.

The new Prime Minister was assigned to lead the relief efforts and reconstruction in the Gaza Strip and reform the institutions of the Palestinian Authority in the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

Mustafa replaces former Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh who, along with his government, resigned in late February.

Earlier on February 27, Abbas accepted the resignation of Shtayyeh's government and assigned the Prime Minister and his ministers to a caretaker government until a new one was formed.

Shtayyeh had submitted his resignation a day earlier, and Abbas issued a decree of acceptance, assigning the government to work temporarily until the formation of a new government,

An official source pointed out that the resignation decision was a preemptive step taken by Abbas in the face of pressures faced by the Palestinian Authority (PA) from regional countries, the international community, and the United States.

According to the source, the decision allegedly aims to put the ball in these sides' court to stop the war on the Gaza Strip, secure international guarantees for the full withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces from Gaza, halt Israeli incursions into the occupied West Bank and lift the financial siege imposed on the Palestinian Authority.

The official source mentioned that the resignation is the first step toward forming a new government and will be followed by two other steps: stopping the war in the Gaza Strip and achieving a national consensus for all Palestinian factions, including Hamas.