LOC14:19
11:19 GMT
RAMALLAH, April 27 (KUNA) -- Hussein Al-Sheikh's selection as Vice President of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas came as no surprise, in addition to being Secretary of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Executive Committee, and member of the Fatah Central Committee, he is one of Abbas's closest confidantes.
Al-Sheikh has become a prominent figure in the Palestinian political scene, participating in the President's foreign tours, meeting with international officials at his office in Ramallah, chairing PLO Executive Committee meetings, and participating in foreign meetings as a representative of Palestine.
Al-Sheikh also served as the Palestinian General Authority of Civil Affairs' Chairman, which communicates with the Israeli occupation's government on behalf of Palestinians, until last February when President Abbas issued a decree appointing Ayman Qandil as his successor.
Before becoming Vice President, he was seen as the most prominent figure likely to assume a senior position in the Palestinian Authority, and a successor to the 89-year-old President Abbas, he is also supported from within the Fatah movement, who signed the Oslo Accords with the Israeli occupation.
Al-Sheikh was detained for 11 years in Israeli occupation prisons, from 1978 to 1989, he was a member of the Unified National Leadership during the First Intifada, and he was hunted by the occupation during the Second Intifada, which began in 2000 until 2005.
The PLO Executive Committee approved Al-Sheikh's nomination, which President Abbas presented to the members during their meeting Saturday, the appointment was also welcomed by a number of Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia and Jordan. (end)
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