Former Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyd was reported to be the possible next ruler of Gaza, according to a report in the Saudi Al Arabiya channel.
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Fayad, an economist, who served at the head of the Palestinian government between 2005 and 2013, was thought to hold moderate views and has had good relations with Israeli officials. He has been living in the United States in the past years and was teaching at Princeton University.
The former Palestinian official said he was not in favor of the Palestinian Authority taking a part in the governing of Gaza after the war. "This is not a technical matter," he said. "This is political. The PA will not come in on the back of an Israeli tank."
Despite those comments, he is well respected in the West and was invited by the Biden administration to enquire how his appointment would be seen by Hamas and other Gaza factions.
Sources in the Arab world said the U.S. and the Europeans understood that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's role had ended. Israeli officials may also view Fayyad's appointment to govern Gaza, favorably.
Fayyad said last month that Hamas could not be destroyed. "This is not limited to Yahya Sinwar and Israel knows that well," he said. Israeli officials recently noted that no Arab state of moderate entity would agree to accept responsibility over Gaza until Hamas is eliminated, fearing assassination.
An associate of Mohammad Dahlan, who was the leader of the Fatah movement in Gaza and also considered for a role in post-war Gaza, said that Fayyad was distant from the Palestinian people after living in the U.S. for long years. "The people of Gaza will not bless his appointment. He is a native of Nablus who served as finance minister and then prime minister but failed to fight the corruption plaguing the PA."