A meeting of the Palestinian Council of Ministers chaired by Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh, Monday, January 29, 2024 (Palestinian media)

Palestinian Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh announced - yesterday, Monday - that he had submitted the resignation of his government to President Mahmoud Abbas, in view of the political, security and economic developments related to the situation in the Gaza Strip and the unprecedented escalation in the West Bank.

According to an analysis published by the Associated Press, the announcement represents the first step in the reform process that the United States is urging as part of its vision to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

However, the agency's report believes that appointing a new government in the West Bank will not address the problem that the Palestinian Authority has long suffered from, namely the lack of legitimacy in the eyes of the Palestinians, and will not be a solution to its tense relations with Israel.

The problem of legitimacy and tense relations with Israel represent two obstacles to American plans aimed at entrusting the management of matters in the Gaza Strip after the war to the Palestinian Authority, which administers parts of the occupied West Bank.

But Washington's plans are based on the assumption that the war in Gaza will end with the defeat of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), an Israeli and American goal that seems unattainable after about 5 months of the brutal Israeli war on the Gaza Strip, which claimed the lives of about 30,000 Palestinian martyrs and plunged the Gaza Strip into a dangerous famine.

What does changing the Palestinian government bring to the Gaza Strip?

What is its relationship to the ongoing Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip for about 5 months?

Palestinian Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh announces the submission of his government’s resignation to President Mahmoud Abbas#Gaza_War pic.twitter.com/F0xTFPryxE

- Al Jazeera Channel (@AJArabic) February 26, 2024

Reasons and implications

During the speech that included his announcement of his resignation, Shtayyeh explained that the next stage requires the formation of a new government that takes into account the current challenges due to the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, with a focus on the issue of national unity and strengthening national authority over the entire territory of Palestine.

Shtayyeh said that the decision to resign also comes in light of the fierce and unprecedented attacks on the Palestinian people and their cause, attempts at genocide, forced displacement and starvation in the Gaza Strip.

After Abbas accepted the resignation of his prime minister, expectations emerged indicating that he would appoint the economist and current director of the Palestine Investment Fund, Muhammad Mustafa, to replace Shtayyeh.

The Associated Press report suggests that the appointment of Mustafa, who was educated in the United States and held senior positions in the World Bank, will be welcomed by Tel Aviv, Washington and other capitals, as he is an independent politician who does not owe allegiance to the Fatah movement.

The report also indicates that the appointment of Mustafa, who does not have a political base to support him, will place the final say on major policies in the hands of Abbas (88 years old). It will also give the Palestinian Authority a new image of a more professional authority that has undergone reform and is ready to manage the Gaza Strip, which is important for the Palestinian Authority. For the United States, according to the agency.

US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said that it is up to the Palestinians to choose their leaders, "but the United States welcomes any steps to reform and revitalize the Palestinian Authority."

He said that the US administration believes that these steps are positive, "and an important step to reunite Gaza and the West Bank under the leadership of the Palestinian Authority."

How do Palestinians view authority?

Abbas's popularity has witnessed a significant decline in recent years, as opinion polls consistently indicate that the vast majority of Palestinians want his resignation and exit from power, according to an Associated Press analysis.

Many Palestinians view the Authority as a mere “contractor guarding the interests of the occupation,” according to the agency, which said that this is due to security coordination between the Palestinian Authority and Israel, which arouses the anger of the people.

The Palestinian Authority has continued to suppress those who oppose it in the areas under its control. It has also violently suppressed protests, thrown those who oppose it into prison, and tortured them.

Although Abbas's term ended in 2009, he refuses to hold elections, citing Israeli restrictions.

While observers believe that Hamas's popularity increased during the rounds of conflict with the Israeli occupation, the movement is also expected to reap good results if free elections are organized, according to the American agency.

Source: Al Jazeera + Associated Press