Abbas designates close confidant Hussein Al-Sheikh as PLO vice president, positioning him as a potential future leader.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas Taps Key Aide Hussein Al-Cheikh as New PLO Deputy Leader
On the Saturday of April 26, 2025, Mahmoud Abbas, president of Palestine, set Hussein Al-Cheikh, a close advisor, for the newly formed position of Vice President of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). According to a source within the PLO's executive committee, Wasel Abou Youssef, this appointment hints at Al-Cheikh as a potential successor to Abbas.
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The position was officially established on Thursday, April 24, in a Ramallah convention, West Bank, at the initiative of the same Mahmoud Abbas, who's been under international pressure to reform the PLO. Arab and Western nations aim to see the Palestinian Authority, led by Mr. Abbas, play a role in governing Gaza afterward the ongoing war there.
Aref Jaffal, head of the Al-Marsad electoral monitoring center, explains the newly created Vice President position within the PLO, an organization allowing for international treaty negotiations on behalf of the Palestinian people, is a preparation for Mahmoud Abbas's succession.
Al-Cheikh, age 65, is a long-time member of Abbas's Fatah movement and shares a close bond with him. Serving over a decade in Israeli prisons between the 1970s and '80s, he learned Hebrew during his imprisonment.
Mahmoud Abbas has presided over PLO since 2004
Previously, Al-Cheikh served as Secretary-General of the PLO's executive committee in 2022, as well as the head of the committee's negotiations department. This sensitive role demonstrates his closeness to Mr. Abbas. Recenlty, Abbas has also appointed him to oversee Palestinian diplomatic missions abroad.
Established in 1964, the PLO unites the majority of Palestinian political factions, not including the Islamic Hamas movement, which seized control of Gaza in 2007. Abbas declared his intentions to create a Vice-Presidency position in March at a summit in Cairo on the future of Gaza following the Israel-Hamas war.
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Abbas has headed the PLO since 2004 and became president of the Palestinian Authority at the start of 2005, soon after the passing of historic Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat. Since then, he's held the post without contest, making him the current longest-serving leader.
Upon Abbas's death, the PLO Vice President will likely assume the temporary leadership of both the organization and the State of Palestine, recognized by nearly 150 countries.
Test Your Knowledge: Several Palestinian factions opposed to the creation of the vice-presidency pulled out of the convention this week. Abbas, however, defends the creation, arguing it strengthens Palestinian institutions and aids efforts to recognize the Palestinian state. Some observers see the move as a tactic to reduce the concentration of power at the PLO's helm, a demand of the international community.
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- In 2022, Hussein Al-Cheikh served as Secretary-General of the PLO's executive committee, a role that underscores his close relationship with Mahmoud Abbas.
- In March, Mahmoud Abbas declared his intentions to create a Vice-Presidency position within the PLO at a summit in Cairo, discussing the future of Gaza following the Israel-Hamas war.
- Upon Mahmoud Abbas's death, the PLO Vice President is expected to assume the temporary leadership of both the organization and the State of Palestine, recognized by nearly 150 countries.
- Some observers see Abbas's creation of a PLO Vice Presidency as a tactic to reduce the concentration of power at the organization's helm, a demand of the international community.
