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Photo: Shaul Golan
Mohammed Dahlan
Photo: Shaul Golan

From friends to foes: Abbas and Dahlan continue to face off

Analysis: Behind the scenes of the power struggle over the Palestinian Authority: Accusations, interviews and egg-throwing.

The violent conflict between Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and former Fatah leader Mohammed Dahlan has reached a new level: The two have been exchanging accusations about corruption, cooperation with Israel and involvement in Arafat's death. But what happens behind the scenes of the power struggle over the Palestinian Authority?

 

 

One would think that these days the Palestinians would be occupied with Abbas' visit to Washington and the upcoming fourth stage of prisoners release, but the only thing that concerns them these days is the never-ending power-struggle between the PA president and his arch rival Dahlan.

 

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From the highest ranks of government to social media discussions and talk on the street, the main topic is the long and publicized feud between the two that has all the right ingredients to become a successful telenovela – burning hate, violence, weapons, and a fierce competition to win the hearts of the people.

 

Mohammed Dahlan and President Abbas in happier times (Photo: AP) (Photo: AP)
Mohammed Dahlan and President Abbas in happier times (Photo: AP)

 

Dahlan was a senior Fatah member carrying senior positions in the Palestinian government and security forces until he was accused of conspiring to overthrow Abbas and set up an armed militia. He was ostentatiously expelled from the movement in 2011.

 

Demonstrations in support of PA president Abbas.
Demonstrations in support of PA president Abbas.
 

 

After being impeached, Dahlan was exiled to Dubai and Abbas ordered the closure of news websites that were identified with him. On his end, Dahlan repeatedly accused Abbas of financial corruption, the Fatah defeat in the election to the parliament and the fall of the Gaza Strip to Hamas control.

 

Last week, as tensions were rising between Israel and Hamas, the two opened a new round of blows as the official Palestinian television aired a recorded speech by Abbas directed to Fatah Revolutionary Council, where he disparaged Dahlan to the point of essentially sanctioning his killing.

 

Abbas also said in his speech that Dahlan knew in advance about the Israeli assassination attempt on Salah Shehade, leader of the Hamas military wing who was killed in 2002 by IDF targeted killing. In addition, Abbas accused Dahlan of cooperating with Israel and insinuated he is linked to Yasser Arafat's death.

 

Dahlan responded quickly and gave a three hour interview to a private Egyptian private television channel Dream TV 2, where he again accused Abbas and his sons of financial corruption and of harming the Palestinian interest by running weak negotiations with Israel. The interview took place less than a day before Abbas' meeting with US President Barack Obama in Washington.

 

The interview created an uproar that would just not die; the next day thousand of Palestinians went out to the streets in support of Abbas, burning pictures of Dahlan in front of the cameras. A few hours later, in the middle of the night, shots were fired at Jibril Rajoub's home, Dahlan's sworn enemy.

 

Palestinian security forces arrived at the scene and opened an investigation, but at the same time tried to silence the case. Though the connection between the shooting to the Abbas-Dahlan feud is slim, its timing suggests considering a link.

 

Senior Fatah members supporting Abbas harshly criticized the Egyptian channel and Dahlan's interviewer Wael Al Abrashi for allowing Dahlan to lay out his accusations for hours uninterrupted, without being askedtough questions and without seeking a response from the Palestinian Authority. The Channel refused to comment on the Palestinian Authority's demand for a response.

 

The Palestinian Journalists Association even ordered a ban on Dream TV 2 and Wael Al Abrashi for the channel's refusal to apologize for insulting the Palestinian people.

 

The implications of the interview were so severe that on Wednesday the Egyptian ambassador in the Palestinian Authority issued a clarification according to which Dahlan's statements in the interview don’t reflect the views of the Egyptian government and people.

 

On Wednesday, Fatah spokesman Ahmed Assaf was sent to Cairo to be interviewed by a number of Egyptian media outlets in an attempt to refute Dahlan's accusations. But the visit didn't go quietly as supporters of Dahlan violently attacked Assaf and threw eggs at him when he arrived to the official Egyptian news agency offices.

 

It is believed that the current round between the two wasn't inflamed by chance; Abbas is 79 and hasn't appointed a successor. Dahlan sets his sights on the day after Abbas in the hope of returning to the West Bank and taking the lead.

 


פרסום ראשון: 03.21.14, 01:16
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