Palestinian PM Rami Hamdallah resigns over ‘conflict of authority’ after two weeks on the job
Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah resigned Thursday after only two weeks on the job.
Hamdallah submitted his resignation over disagreements with his two deputies appointed by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
The former university professor, who was largely unknown in diplomatic and political circles, replaced outgoing Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, a former World Bank employee.
Fayyad had also been a political neophyte before joining the Palestinian Authority that rules the West Bank.
Politically independent Fayyad resigned in mid-April after a series of conflicts with Abbas.
Hamdallah's resignation has not yet been accepted and the Associated Press speculated that he could be using it as a bargaining chip to acquire more powers.
More from GlobalPost: Rami Hamdallah named Palestinian prime minister by Abbas
Abbas' office has yet to comment.
The prime minister holds less power than the president in the Palestinian Authority, meaning that Hamdallah would answer to Abbas on major issues.
Hamdallah's office said the resignation came after a "conflict of authority" but details remained vague.
Hamdallah had previously been a member of Abbas' Fatah party and his appointment was seen as a move to strengthen its power during difficult negotiations with its rival Hamas, which retains political control of Gaza.
Hamdallah's career on Twitter was just as short-lived as his tenure as leader:
Every day, reporters and producers at The World are hard at work bringing you human-centered news from across the globe. But we can’t do it without you. We need your support to ensure we can continue this work for another year.
Make a gift today, and you’ll help us unlock a matching gift of $67,000!