'Abbas, Mahmoud
'Abbas, Mahmoud (b. March 26, 1935- ) was the Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and President of the Palestinian National Authority.
Also known by the kunya, Abu Mazen, Mahmoud 'Abbas was born on March 26, 1935 in Zefat in what is now northern Israel. During the war that followed the establishment of the nation of Israel in 1948, 'Abbas fled to Syria with his family.
In the mid-1950s, 'Abbas became heavily involved in underground Palestinian politics, Joining a number of exiled Palestinians in Qatar, where 'Abbas was Director of Personnel in the emirate's Civil Service. 'Abbas and Arafat helped found al-Fatah ("the Conquest"), a militant Palestinian group that became part of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), a political body that represented the Palestinian people. In the late 1950s, Arafat was establishing the groundwork of Fatah by enlisting wealthy Palestinians in Qatar, Kuwait, and other Persian Gulf States.
In 1958, 'Abbas earned a bachelor's degree in law from the University of Damascus in Syria.
As head of the PLO’s international department in the late 1970s, Abbas was instrumental in forging contacts with Israeli peace groups. 'Abbas efforts with Israeli peace groups were ironic in that Abu Daoud, the man who planned the 1972 Munich Massacre of members of the Israeli team at the Munich Olympic Games which ended with the murder of eleven Israeli athletes and coaches and a West German policeman, later claimed that the funds for the operation were provided by 'Abbas, although without 'Abbas' knowing what the money would be used for.
In 1980, he became head of the PLO's national and international relations department.
'Abbas earned a doctorate in history from the Institute of Oriental Studies (Moscow State University) in Moscow in 1982. The theme of his doctoral dissertation was "The Other Side: The secret relations between Nazism and the leadership of the Zionist movement". This dissertation, which examined Nazism and Zionism, later was decried by Jewish groups as a work of Holocaust denial, and in the 1990s 'Abbas distanced himself from some of its more controversial elements.
'Abbas opposed the 1987 intifada (the armed Palestinian uprising against Israel). He also performed diplomatic duties, presenting a moderating face for PLO policies.
In the early 1990s Abbas shaped Palestinian negotiating strategy at both the peace conference in Madrid (1991) and in secret meetings with the Israelis in Norway. Through the resulting Oslo Accords (1993), Israel and the Palestinians extended mutual recognition to each other, and Israel ceded some governing functions in the West Bank and Gaza Strip to a Palestinian Authority.
Abbas was the first PLO official to visit Saudi Arabia after the Gulf War in January 1993 to mend fences with the Gulf countries for the PLO's support of Iraq during the Persian Gulf War. At the 1993 peace accord with Israel, Abbas was the signatory for the PLO on 13 September 1993. He published a memoir, Through Secret Channels: The Road to Oslo (1995).
In 1995, 'Abbas returned to live in Palestine for the first time since leaving for exile and, in 1996, he became secretary-general of the PLO Executive Committee.
'Abbas again opposed the intifada -- the second intifada -- which began in 2000. 'Abbas was a senior member of the Palestinian delegation to the Camp David peace talks in July 2000. 'Abbas adamantly rejected Israel’s peace offer but opposed the violent Palestinian uprising called the intifāḍa (Arabic: “shaking off”) that followed.
By early 2003, as both Israel and the United States had indicated their refusal to negotiate with Yasser Arafat, 'Abbas began to emerge as a candidate for a more visible leadership role. As one of the few remaining founding members of Fatah, he had some degree of credibility within the Palestinian cause, and his candidacy was bolstered by the fact that other high-profile Palestinians were for various reasons not suitable (the most notable, Marwan Barghouthi, was under arrest in an Israeli jail after being convicted of multiple murders). 'Abbas's reputation as a pragmatist garnered him favor with the West and certain elements of the Palestinian legislature, and pressure was soon brought on Arafat to appoint him prime minister. Arafat did so on March 19, 2003. Initially, Arafat attempted to undermine the post of prime minister, but was eventually forced to give 'Abbas some degree of power.
However, the rest of 'Abbas's term as prime minister continued to be characterised by numerous conflicts between him and Arafat over the distribution of power between the two. 'Abbas had often hinted he would resign if not given more control over the administration. In early September 2003, he confronted the Palestinian parliament over this issue. The United States and Israel accused Arafat of constantly undermining 'Abbas and his government.
In addition, 'Abbas came into conflict with Palestinian militant groups, notably the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement and Hamas because his pragmatic policies were opposed to their hard-line approach. However, he made it perfectly clear that he was forced to abandon, for the moment, the use of arms against Israeli civilians inside the green line due to its ineffectiveness.
Initially he pledged not to use force against the militants, in the interest of avoiding a civil war, and instead attempted negotiation. This was partially successful, resulting in a pledge from the two groups to honor a unilateral Palestinian cease-fire. However, continuing violence and Israeli "target killings" of known leaders forced 'Abbas to pledge a crackdown in order to uphold the Palestinian Authority's side of the road map for peace. This led to a power struggle with Arafat over control of the Palestinian security services. Arafat refused to release control to 'Abbas, thus preventing him from using them on the militants.
Abbas resigned as prime minister in October 2003, citing lack of support from Israel and the United States as well as "internal incitement" against his government.
On November 11, 2004, Yasser Arafat died. On that same day, Mahmoud 'Abbas was appointed chairman of the Executive Committee of the PLO. Although 'Abbas had little popular support among Palestinians, he was highly regarded in the international community for his moderate stance and peacemaking efforts.
After Yasser Arafat's death, Mahmoud 'Abbas was seen, at least by Fatah, as his natural successor. On November 25, 2004, 'Abbas was endorsed by Fatah's Revolutionary Council as its preferred candidate for the presidential election, scheduled for January 9, 2005.
On 14 December 14, 2004, 'Abbas called for an end to violence in the Second Intifada and a return to peaceful resistance. However, he refused to disarm Palestinian militants or tp use force against groups that Israel, the United States and the European Union designated as terrorist organisations.
With Israeli forces arresting and restricting the movement of other candidates, Hamas' boycott of the election, and his campaign being given 94% of the Palestinian electoral campaign coverage on TV, 'Abbas' election was virtually ensured, and on January 9, 2005 'Abbas was elected with 62% of the vote as President of the Palestinian National Authority.
Despite Abbas' call for a peaceful solution, attacks by militant groups continued after his election, in a direct challenge to his authority. The Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement launched a raid in Gaza on January 12, 2005 that killed one and wounded three military personnel in Gaza. On January 13, 2005, Palestinians from the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, Hamas, and the Popular Resistance Committees launched a suicide attack on the Karni crossing, killing six Israelis. As a result, Israel shut down the damaged terminal and broke off relations with 'Abbas and the Palestinian Authority, stating that 'Abbas needed to show a gesture of peace by attempting to stop such attacks.
'Abbas was formally sworn in as the Chairman of the Palestinian National Authority in a ceremony held on January 15, 2005 in the West Bank town of Ramallah.
On January 23, 2005, Israeli radio reported that 'Abbas had secured a thirty-day ceasefire from Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. On February 12, 2005, Palestinians attacked Israeli settlements and 'Abbas quickly fired some of his security officers for not stopping the attacks in a ceasefire.
In May 2005, 'Abbas travelled to the White House and met with his American counterpart, George W. Bush. Bush, in return for 'Abbas' crackdown on terrorists, pledged 50 million United States dollars in aid to the Palestinian Authority and reiterated the United States pledge for a free Palestinian state. It was the first direct aid the United States had given to the Palestinian, as previous donations had gone through non-governmental organizations. The next day Prime Minister Paul Martin of Canada pledged 9.5 million Canadian dollars in new aid for judicial reform and housing projects, monitors for the Palestinian elections, border management and scholarships for Palestinian refugee women in Lebanon.
On July 25, 2005, 'Abbas announced that he would move his office to Gaza until the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops in order to coordinate the Palestinian side of the withdrawal, mediating between the different factions.
On August 9, 2005, 'Abbas announced that legislative elections, originally scheduled for July 17, 2005, would take place in January 2006. On January 15, 2006 'Abbas declared that despite unrest in Gaza, he would not change the set date of the elections (January 25), unless Israel decided to prevent Arabic speakers in East Jerusalem from voting. Hamas won a majority of votes in this election.
On January 16, 2006, 'Abbas said that he would not run for office again at the end of his current term. On May 25, 2006, 'Abbas gave Hamas a ten-day deadline to accept the 1967 ceasefire lines.
On June 2, 2006, 'Abbas again announced that if Hamas did not approve the prisoners' document—which called for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict according to the 1967 borders—within two days, he would present the initiative as a referendum. This deadline was subsequently extended until June 10, 2006. Hamas replied that a change in their stance would not occur, and that 'Abbas was not constitutionally permitted to call a referendum, especially so soon after the January 2006 elections.
'Abbas warned Hamas on October 8, 2006 that he would call new legislative elections if it did not accept a coalition government. To recognize Israel was a condition 'Abbas presented for a coalition. However, it was not clear if Abbas had the power to call new elections.
On December 16, 2006, Abbas called for new legislative elections, to bring an end to the parliamentary stalemate between Fatah and Hamas in forming a national coalition government.
On March 17, 2007, a unity government was formed incorporating members of both Hamas and Fatah, with Ismail Haniyeh as Prime Minister and independent politicians taking many key portfolios.
On June 14, 2007, 'Abbas dissolved the Hamas-led unity government of Haniyeh, declared a state of emergency, and appointed Salam Fayyad in Haniyeh's place. This followed action by Hamas armed forces to take control of Palestinian Authority positions controlled by Fatah militias. The appointment of Fayyad to replace Haniyeh was challenged as illegal because, under the Palestinian Basic Law, the president could dismiss a sitting prime minister, but could not appoint a replacement without the approval of the Palestinian Legislative Council. According to the law, until a new prime minister is thus appointed, the outgoing prime minister heads a caretaker government. Fayyad's appointment was never placed before, or approved by the Legislative Council. For this reason, Haniyeh the Hamas prime minister continued to operate in Gaza, and was recognised by a large number of Palestinians as the legitimate acting prime minister.
On June 18, 2007, the European Union promised to resume direct aid to the Palestinian Authority, Abbas dissolved the National Security Council, a sticking point in the defunct unity government with Hamas. That same day, the United States decided to end its fifteen-month embargo on the Palestinian Authority and resume aid, attempting to strengthen 'Abbas's West Bank government. A day later, the Fatah Central Committee cut off all ties and dialogue with Hamas, pending the return of Gaza.
On March 2, 2008, 'Abbas stated he was suspending peace talks with Israel, while Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert vowed to press on with military operations against militants who have been launching home-made rockets into southern Israel.
On May 20, 2008, 'Abbas stated he would resign from his office if the current round of peace talks had not yielded an agreement in principle "within six months". He also stated that the current negotiations were, in effect, deadlocked.
'Abbas was chosen as the President of the "State of Palestine" by the Palestine Liberation Organisation's Central Council on November 23, 2008, a job he had held unofficially since May 8, 2005.
On January 9, 2009, 'Abbas' term as president, at least as he was originally elected, ended. Elected to serve until January 9, 2009, 'Abbas unilaterally extended his term for another year and continued in office even after that deadline expired. 'Abbas justified the extension by stating that the Basic Law gave him the right to do so, so he could align the next presidential and parliamentary elections. Pointing to the Palestinian constitution, Hamas disputed the validity of this move, and considered 'Abbas' term to have ended, in which case Abdel Aziz Duwaik, Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council would have become acting president.
Questions about the legitimacy of 'Abbas' continued presidency did not appear to affect his acceptance by other world leaders. In May 2009, 'Abbas welcomed Pope Benedict XVI to the West Bank, who supported 'Abbas' goal of a Palestinian State. Also, in May of 2009, 'Abbas made a visit to Canada, where he met with foreign affairs minister Lawrence Cannon and Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
In February 2010, 'Abbas visited Japan for the third time as Palestinian President. In this visit, he met Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama. He also visited Hiroshima, the first such visit by a Palestinian leader, and spoke about the suffering of the people of Hiroshima, who he compared to the suffering of the Palestinians.
'Abbas married Amina 'Abbas and they had three sons, including Yasser Abbas, who was named after former Palestinian Authority leader Yasser Arafat.
Mahmoud 'Abbas, also known by the kunya Abu Mazen, was an Arab of the Sunni-Muslim faith. He became the Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) on November 11, 2004 and became President of the Palestinian National Authority on January 15, 2005 on the Fatah ticket.
Mahmoud 'Abbas was elected to serve until January 9, 2009. However, due to Palestinian Internal conflict, he unilaterally extended his term for another year and continued in office even after that second deadline expired. As a result of this, Fatah's main rival, Hamas announced that it would not recognize the extension or view 'Abbas as rightful president. 'Abbas was chosen as the President of the State of Palestine by the Palestine Liberation Organization's Central Council on November 23, 2008, a job he had held unofficially since May 8, 2005. 'Abbas served as the first Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority from March to October 2003 when he resigned citing lack of support from Israel and the United States as well as "internal incitement" against his government. Before being named prime minister, 'Abbas led the PLO's Negotiations Affairs Department.
Alternative names include:
'Abbas, Mahmoud
Abu Mazen
Abu Mazin
Mahmoud 'Abbas
Mazen, Abu
Mazin, Abu
