Palestinian president’s son Yasser Abbas elected to top Fatah post
Key takeaways
- Yasser Abbas, the 64-year-old son of ageing Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas, won a seat Sunday on the central committee of the Fatah party, initial results showed.
- By: FRANCE 24 File photo of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas leaving a Ramallah hospital with his son Yasser Abbas taken on May 28, 2018.
- Jailed Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti topped the preliminary results, retaining his seat on the committee with the highest number of votes, according to figures seen by AFP.
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
Yasser Abbas, the 64-year-old son of ageing Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas, won a seat Sunday on the central committee of the Fatah party, initial results showed. The election extended the family's grip on the movement that has dominated the Palestinian Authority (PA) for decades. The PA is under mounting pressure to hold long-delayed presidential and parliamentary elections.
By: FRANCE 24 File photo of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas leaving a Ramallah hospital with his son Yasser Abbas taken on May 28, 2018. © Mohamad Torokman, Reuters The son of Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas won a seat on Fatah's top decision-making body on Sunday, as initial results emerged from the Palestinian movement's first congress in years.
Yasser Abbas, 64, a businessman who spends most of his time in Canada, secured a place on the central committee after being appointed around five years ago as his father's "special representative" – a role that marked his gradual emergence on the political scene.