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Dahlan renews attacks on Palestinian Authority and Mahmoud Abbas

October 31, 2016 at 10:22 am

Polarising Fatah figure Mohammad Dahlan has renewed his attacks on the Palestinian Authority (PA) under the leadership of Mahmoud Abbas, in an interview with Ma’an News Agency.

Accusing the PA of financial mismanagement and political incompetency, Dahlan said that the body “fails to allocate one tenth of that money [its annual budget] to protect Jerusalem and help our people stay firm in Jerusalem.”

By contrast, he continued, the PA spends “hundreds of millions on building embassies all over the world, on travel, and on delegations.”

Dahlan also charged the PA with only spending “0.003 per cent of its budget on the Palestinian refugees in Syria and Lebanon”, refugees “living dire conditions and deprived of the right to work, movement, education and medical treatment.”

Denouncing the recent dispersal by PA forces of a Fatah activists’ meeting in the Al-Amari refugee camp, Dahlan claimed that six previous efforts at reconciling him with Abbas have failed.

“At the beginning of each reconciliation initiative, Abu Mazen [Mahmoud Abbas] would agree, but at the end he would go back on his word, despite the fact that I gave up on all my rights except the right to remain in Fatah.”

Dahlan dismissed rumours he is himself looking to replace Abbas. “I am not a candidate, nor am I aspiring for presidency and I say this confidently and with ease”, he told Ma’an. Rather, he reiterated his backing for imprisoned Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti.

Dahlan also claimed that Abbas “is working to drive out all the voices that aren’t obedient to him.” He went on: “If Abu Mazen doesn’t work to convene the Fatah conference in order to serve his own interests, we’ll consider how to respond.”