The Palestinian prime minister announced the resignation of his government on Monday, paving the way for a shake-up in the Palestinian Authority, which the US hopes will eventually take on a role in postwar Gaza. "The decision to resign came in light of the unprecedented escalation in the West Bank and Jerusalem and the war, genocide, and starvation in the Gaza Strip," said Mohammad Shtayyeh at a Cabinet meeting Monday, per Al Jazeera. "The next stage and its challenges require new governmental and political arrangements that take into account the new reality in Gaza."
Many obstacles remain to making a revamped Palestinian Authority a reality. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, whose forces were driven from Gaza by Hamas in 2007, has made clear that he would like the PA to govern the enclave after the war. But it is deeply unpopular among Palestinians, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has roundly rejected the idea of putting the authority in charge, calling instead for Israel to maintain open-ended security control after the conflict, with Palestinian officials in charge of civilian affairs. The Palestinians have rejected such a limited role and seek an independent state in the West Bank, east Jerusalem, and Gaza.
Abbas must still decide whether he accepts the resignation of Shtayyeh's government, notes the AP. But the move signals a willingness by the Western-backed Palestinian leadership to accept a shake-up that might usher in reforms sought by the United States, as international negotiations ramp up to bring about a ceasefire. Abbas is expected to choose Mohammad Mustafa, chairman of the Palestine Investment Fund, as the next prime minister. Mustafa is a US-educated economist who has held senior positions in the World Bank and served in senior posts in the Palestinian Authority. Palestinian officials say he has a good, longstanding working relationship with American officials. (More Palestinian Authority stories.)
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
