Arafat’s Succession Page: 2 of 5
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removal.1 The Israeli right-wing press has called for "action" against Arafat, which some
have interpreted as advocating imprisonment or even assassination.
Current Status and Procedures
Yasir Arafat (a.k.a. Abu Ammar) holds four positions: the elected President of the
Palestinian Authority; the Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO); the
recognized head of Fatah, the largest component of the PLO; and President of the state
of Palestine declared in 1988. Who will replace Yasir Arafat if he should be removed
from these offices for any reason? What procedures exist for replacing the President/
Chairman/leader? It appears unlikely that one person will replace Arafat in all four posts.
Palestinian Authority.2 Yasir Arafat was elected President ("rais" in Arabic,
translated as "boss," president, or chairman) of the Palestinian Authority (PA) on January
20, 1996, with 87% of the vote. His opponent, Samiha Khalil, entered the race because
she believed a non-competitive election would present a negative image of Palestinian
democracy. Under the Gaza-Jericho agreement of May 1994, the elected President and
Legislative Council were to serve during the five-year interim period from the 1996
elections until May 1999, by which time it was believed that the Israelis and Palestinians
would have negotiated a permanent peace treaty and the Palestinians would have in place
a permanent government that would conduct future elections. The interim period expired
on May 30, 1999, at which time the 88-member elected Palestinian Legislative Council
and Arafat's term as President presumably expired as well, although no one has
challenged the PLC or Arafat's remaining in office since then.
The electoral law passed on December 7, 1995, established procedures for the
January 20, 1996 election of the Palestinian Legislative Council and the President. After
the January 20, 1996 elections, the Palestinian Authority Legislative Council (PLC)
passed a Basic Law that provides for elections for the PLC and President. Article 90 of
the 1995 electoral law and Article 59 of the Basic Law are similar; both provide for
filling the office of President if vacated by death, resignation, or judicial removal for
incompetence. The PLC must approve by a two-thirds vote either a resignation or a
constitutional court decision that a President is incompetent to continue in office. Once
the President's office is vacant, the Speaker of the PLC becomes the acting President for
60 days, during which time the PLC shall elect another President. The current PLC
Speaker is Rawhi Fattuh (alternate spelling Rauhi Fattouh).
Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization.3 The Palestine National
Council (PNC), a 400-member body representing the PLO's constituent groups, elects an
18-member Executive Committee, which in turn elects a Chairman from among its
1 James Bennet and Joel Greenberg, "Israel Breaks with Arafat After Palestinian Assault on Bus
in West Bank Kills 10," New York Times, December 13, 2001; Harvey Morris, "Israel Says It
Will Not Force Arafat Out," Financial Times (London), December 15, 2001; Matt Spetalnick,
"Attacks 'Delegitimise' Arafat -Israeli Army Chief," Reuters, December 18, 2002.
2 Succession procedures and issues for the PA, PLO, Fatah, and the state are covered in Jean-
Francois Legrain, "The Succession of Yasir Arafat," Journal of Palestine Studies, vol. XXVIII,
no. 4, Summer 1999, pp. 5-20.
3 Organization of the PLO can be found at [http://www.palestine-un.org/plo/frindex.html].
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Mark, Clyde. Arafat’s Succession, report, November 5, 2004; Washington D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc820918/m1/2/: accessed April 20, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.