Mohammad Mustafa, the Palestinian Prime Minister, has formed a fresh cabinet as per reports from the Palestinian news agency, WAFA, where he will take on the role of Foreign Minister. He emphasises an urgent ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza as primary objectives.
Mustafa, known as an ally to President Mahmoud Abbas and a prominent business figure, assumed the role of Premier this month with a mandate to facilitate reforms within the Palestinian Authority (PA), which maintains limited self-governance in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Additionally, he has been tasked with leading the efforts for relief and reconstruction in Gaza, which has endured over five months of non-stop bombardment from Israel. Simultaneously, he will serve as Foreign Minister, succeeding Riyad Al-Maliki, who held the position since 2009.
In a demonstration of readiness to meet international demands for administrative reform, Abbas, the President, approved Mustafa’s cabinet. The cabinet includes financial expert Omar Al-Bitar as Finance Minister and Muhamad Al Amour, former president of the Palestinian Businessmen Association, as Economy Minister. Ziad Hab Al-Reeh, former chief of the PA’s Internal Intelligence Agency, retains his position as Interior Minister, as reported by WAFA.
Furthermore, the new cabinet will incorporate a State Minister for “relief affairs.”
Addressing Abbas in a statement, Mustafa stressed that the foremost national priority is an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and a full withdrawal of Israeli forces from the region. He also emphasised the importance of facilitating the entry of humanitarian aid on a large scale, ensuring access to all areas, and putting an end to aggression and settlement activities, including settlers’ terrorism in the West Bank, as per WAFA.
While the PA, under Abbas’s Fatah political faction, has had a strained relationship with Mahas, the governing body in Gaza, and faced expulsion from the territory in 2007 following a brief war, it has consistently condemned Israeli actions in the Strip since the assault on Israel on October 7. The PA insists on its role in governing Gaza post-war.