Middle East

Jailed Barghouti elected at Fatah congress

Article published on the 2009-08-11 Latest update 2009-08-11 16:45 TU

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, pictured at the Fatah congress in Bethlehem on 8 August, 2009, was re-elected over the weekend
(Photo: Reuters/Fadi Arouri)

Marwan Barghouti, a prominent leader of the last Palestinian uprising, was one of a number of new faces elected to Fatah’s governing body on Tuesday.

Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas’s faction, which was founded by Yasser Arafat half a century ago, is holding its first congress in 20 years as it attempts to rejuvenate.

 

 

A popular figure among Palestinians, Barghuti is currently serving five life terms in an Israeli prison for his role in a number of fatal attacks. However, he has said in the past that he opposed attacks on civilians in Israel.

He is Fatah’s secretary general for the West Bank but, until Tuesday, had never been a member of the party’s central committee.

Jibril Rajub, head of the Palestinian Football Federation and the Palestinian Olympic Committee, was also elected, along with Mohammed Dahlan.

"Today the Fatah emerges from this congress united and strengthened," said Rajub, who is a former Palestinian internal security chief.

Former Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei was among the veterans who lost their seats on the central committee as only four incumbents were returned. Congress delegates in the West Bank town of Bethlehem had elected Abbas to the committee at the weekend.

Rajub said that the decision to elect a new generation of leaders was equivalent to a "revolution" ahead of legislative elections, which are likely to be held early next year.

Fatah, which regularly attacked Israel before Arafat renounced violence, had been the dominant force among Palestinians before being defeated by Hamas in 2006 parliamentary elections.