11/28/2024–|Last updated: 11/28/202406:47 PM (Mecca time)
Rawhi Fattouh, a Palestinian politician, was born in 1949 in the Gaza Strip. He lived as a refugee in Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon, then returned to Palestine in 1994. He held several political positions in both the Palestinian National Liberation Movement (Fatah) and the Palestinian National Authority.
He was elected President of the Palestinian National Council and the Palestinian Legislative Council, and in November 2024, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas issued a constitutional decree according to which Rawhi Fattouh would assume the position of President of the Palestinian Authority if it became vacant.
Birth and upbringing
Rawhi Ahmed Muhammad Fattouh was born on August 23, 1949 in the city of Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip, to a family whose origins go back to the village of Burqa, north of Nablus, which Israel occupied and displaced its people in 1948.
In 1968, he moved from the Gaza Strip to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, and then to Lebanon and Syria.
Study and scientific training
Fattouh received his primary and preparatory education in the schools of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in the city of Rafah, then he moved to Egypt and studied for two years in the schools of the city of Al-Arish.
He obtained his high school diploma in 1970 in the Jordanian city of Zarqa. During his studies, he was active in student and organizational work, and held several positions in the General Union of Palestine Students and the Fatah movement.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in English language and literature, then obtained a master’s degree in political science in 2002.
Political experience
After the setback of 1967, in 1968 he joined the ranks of the Storm Forces of the Fatah movement in Jordan. He also graduated from the Military College in Iraq in 1969 and joined the Palestinian guerrillas in Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.
After the October 1973 war, he joined the Fatah movement in Syria, and held several positions in it until he returned to Palestine in 1994 after the signing of the Oslo Accords and the Palestinian Authority taking over the administration of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Rawhi Fattouh was also known for his activity in student work. He held several positions in the General Union of Palestine Students, including official of the Union’s Executive Committee from 1978 to 1984. He was also head of the Union’s branch in Syria.
In 1996, he was elected as a representative in the Palestinian Legislative Council representing Gaza City, representing the Fatah movement, and then he was elected President of the Council in March 2004.
After the assassination of the late Palestinian President Yasser Arafat, he served as Palestinian president temporarily for two months until Mahmoud Abbas was elected president.
On November 27, 2024, Abbas issued a constitutional decree according to which the Speaker of the National Council, Rawhi Fattouh, would assume the duties of President of the Palestinian Authority in the event that the position became vacant.
According to the aforementioned decree, the President of the National Council assumes power for a period not exceeding 90 days, during which free and direct presidential elections are held.
If it is not possible to hold the elections during that period due to force majeure, “they shall be extended by decision of the Palestinian Central Council for another period, and for one time only.”
The Palestinian Basic Law (representing the Constitution) stipulates that in the event of a vacancy in the position of President of the Palestinian Authority, the President of the Palestinian Legislative Council (Parliament) shall temporarily assume the duties of President for a period not exceeding 60 days, during which free and direct elections will be held to elect a new president.
However, the Legislative Council, in which the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) won most of its seats in the last legislative elections in 2006, was dissolved by the Constitutional Court in late 2018.
Positions and responsibilities
- Chairman of the Palestinian National Council (February 2022).
- Commissioner General for International Relations of the Fatah movement in 2017.
- Member of the Fatah Central Committee since December 2016.
- Personal representative of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas since 2006.
- Member of the Palestinian Central Council since 1996.
- Member of the Palestinian National Council since 1983.
- Interim President of the Palestinian National Authority from November 11, 2004 to January 15, 2005 after the assassination of Arafat.
- Chairman of the Palestinian Legislative Council from March 10, 2004 to February 18, 2006.
- Secretary of the Palestinian Legislative Council from March 7, 1996 to November 12, 2003.
- Head of the Palestinian Expatriate Affairs Department in the Palestine Liberation Organization (2020-2022).
- Minister of Agriculture in the Palestinian government from November 12, 2003 to March 10, 2004.
- Member of the Revolutionary Council of the Fatah movement from 1989 to 2009.
