Rivalry for an elusive authority

For the first time since 2009, Fateh, a key Palestinian faction, holds its long overdue congress today.

What does it mean for the Palestinians? Will it lead to the unity of Fateh members behind one strategic objective? Above all, will it brings the Palestinians closer to independence?

Fateh leader and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said that his efforts will be focusing on closing the gap with the rank and file of his party, but the common belief is that the objective of the congress is, by and large, to sideline his long-time rival Mohammad Dahlan, who poses a serious challenge to Abbas’ presidency.

Meanwhile, he will continue to give lip service to the cause of the Palestinian people: independence and statehood.

The ageing Abbas is not oblivious to the need to find a successor to his failed leadership. Indeed, some regional players have pushed for Dahlan as his successor, at a time Abbas shows no sign that he might be stepping down any time soon.

Abbas’ objective is to demonise Dahlan and block him from returning to the Palestinian territories.

Palestinian’s political infighting has pushed the goal of liberating the Palestinian territories from the last colonial occupation on earth to a back seat. 

Not even Donald Trump’s victory in the American presidential elections seems enough to set off alarms bell for Palestinians.

The US president-elect made clear that he would support the right-wing government in Israel. More importantly, Israelis on the whole interpret the election of Trump as a licence to go on with the settlement activities. 

If this continues unchecked, it is doubtful that there will be room for a two-state solution.

In “The Iron Cage”, Professor Rashid Khalidi argues that part of the responsibility for the Palestinians catastrophe of 1948 falls on the Palestinians themselves. He cites political infighting as one of the reasons for the defeat of 1948.

The unfolding events now show that the Palestinian leadership has yet to learn from history. 

There is little chance for the current Palestinian leadership to lead the Palestinian people to liberation. If anything, the ongoing political infighting hurts their cause.

To be sure, the point is not Dahlan per se; everybody knows that he fell out of grace for the better part of the last decade.  But Fateh should be more tolerant with those who disagree with the current leadership.

In other words, a politics of inclusion, rather than exclusion, should be the hallmark of Palestinian politics unless they seek to follow the political practises of the rest of the Arab world.

Will Abbas manage to unite the Palestinians behind his leadership? Hardly.

Sadly, as if the division between Hamas and Fateh were not enough, the Fateh leaders are further splitting and flagging their party due to rivalry for an elusive authority.

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