Fatah tensions flare as Abbas rejects Fayyad statehood plans

The long-simmering tense relations between Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Salam Fayyad are flaring up again after Abbas struck down a plan by Fayyad to declare Palestinian statehood unilaterally in summer 2011.

In an interview with Channel 2 on Monday, Abbas said that a Palestinian declaration of statehood - a scenario that provokes great concern in Israel - is not on the agenda.

Abbas and Fayyad, longtime political rivals, have maintained a reasonable working relationship. Both men are careful not to criticize one another or contradict the other's statements in public.

However, sources in Ramallah said yesterday that their relations hit a rough patch following Fayyad's interview with Haaretz earlier this month in which he hinted that the PA would unilaterally declare a state in August 2011 if peace talks with Israel fail.

Abbas and his aides were miffed at what they perceive as Fayyad's attempt to circumvent his authority and dictate an agenda to the president and the other institutions of the Palestine Liberation Organization. As prime minister, Fayyad is no more than the head of a government that is subject to the authority of the president.

Fayyad's statements to Haaretz contradict a long-standing position held by Abbas, who does not view a unilateral declaration of statehood as serving Palestinian interests.

Fayyad's statements and actions are gaining greater popularity in public opinion polls. The prime minister has also demonstrated greater independence by taking decisions without input from the president's office. Abbas associates are closely monitoring him. Despite Fayyad's claims that he has no interest in running for the presidency, senior Fatah officials say, in effect, he is running a political campaign by making high-profile appearances usually reserved for elected officials.

Fatah observers note Fayyad's recent participation in a marathon in Nablus; his burning of products made in the settlements; planting of olive groves; and appearing in a Bedouin robe.

Fayyad is not a member of Fatah, and its members are looking with concern at indications an increasing number of Palestinians are expressing support for the prime minister's policies. Should Fayyad decide to run for president, that could threaten Fatah's candidate for the post.

Abbas, in delivering remarks to the Fatah Revolutionary Council on Saturday, appeared to have lost patience with Fayyad and said the only body authorized to make decisions for the Palestinian people is the PLO.

"It is not the factions or the governments that take ownership of decisions," Abbas said, indirectly hinting at Fayyad's independent course of actions.

In Monday's interview with Channel 2 Arab affairs correspondent Ehud Ya'ari, Abbas was asked whether the PA intends on declaring statehood in August 2011. "No, we will not take unilateral measures," Abbas emphatically said. "We will abide by agreements."

Abbas' comments are interpreted as a ringing slap to Fayyad's plans. After the Haaretz interview, the prime minister backtracked by saying that Palestinian preparations for a state will be completed by August 2011.

Abbas associates reprimanded Fayyad for the interview, claiming that a unilateral declaration would play into Israel's hands by limiting the scope of the new state to 50 to 60 percent of the West Bank and leave it without Jerusalem as its capital.

	Abbas
	Photo by: (Reuters)