Salam Fayyad, Prime Minister-designate, has five weeks to form a government. (Mushir Abdelrahman, Maan Images)

1. What developments in the Palestinian Authority government have occurred since Hamas established full control of Gaza?

On June 14, PA President Mahmoud Abbas announced a 30-day emergency period which expired on July 14. In announcing the emergency, President Abbas dismissed Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas as well as the unity government consisting of ministers from all factions that was formed after the Mecca Agreement in February. Abbas appointed an "emergency government" with Salam Fayyad, an independent, as prime minister. The term of that "emergency government" also expired on July 14.

2. Were Abbas' actions legitimate according to Palestinian law?

Those who support the actions taken by Abbas argue that during an emergency the president has sweeping powers, including installing a new government. However, other Palestinian constitutional experts say that while the President had the right to dismiss the prime minister, the Haniyeh government should have continued in a caretaker capacity until a new government could secure a vote of confidence in the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC).

3. What has occurred since the emergency period ended?

On July 13, Prime Minister Fayyad of the "emergency government" expanded his cabinet to include four additional members. That same day, he and his government submitted their resignation to President Abbas. On July 14, Abbas appointed Fayyad as the Prime Minister-designate.

Fayyad now has five weeks to form a cabinet. At the end of the five week period, if Fayyad does not obtain a vote of confidence from the PLC, the President will have to appoint a new PM, who will also be granted five weeks in which to form a cabinet. Throughout this period, the previous "emergency government" will serve in a caretaker capacity until the new government secures a PLC vote of confidence.

4. Will Fayyad be able to form a new government?

It is expected that the PLC will not grant Fayyad the vote of confidence needed to form a new government for the following reasons:

• Hamas holds a majority of the seats in the 132-seat PLC. (Hamas has 74 seats.) It is unlikely that Hamas will grant a vote of confidence to a government of which it is not a member. Moreover, Hamas did not recognize the validity of the "emergency government" and therefore will oppose any measures that seek to legitimize this entity.



• 40 members of Hamas are currently languishing in Israeli prisons. There are no provisions under Palestinian law that allow for absentee/prison voting. Without these 40 members, Hamas loses its PLC majority. As a result, Hamas has decided to boycott any PLC sessions in which a vote of confidence will be tabled.

5. What may President Abbas do if no new government can be formed?

Since the January 2006 elections, the PLC has not passed a single piece of legislation. As a result, and as a result of the PLC's inability to meet, it is expected that President Abbas will suspend the PLC, in spite of the fact that the Basic Law does not empower the President to suspend the PLC.¹ In the event that President Abbas suspends the PLC, it is expected that he will also declare new elections; an action for which he also does not have constitutional power to carry out.

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¹ Under the amended (2003) Basic Law, the President can appoint the prime minister (Article 45); dismiss the prime minister (Article 45), and declare a state of emergency for up to 30 days (Article 110), which can be extended for another 30 days provided two-thirds of the PLC approves. The PA president also has the power to issue decrees. However, he may not initiate and issue laws by decree ("legislative decrees") except in urgent cases and when the PLC is not in session. Such legislative decrees must be reviewed when the PLC reconvenes (Article 43). The PLC is entitled to review all measures taken by the president during a state of emergency. In addition, legislative decrees passed by the president when the PLC is not in session must be reviewed and can be abrogated by the PLC, and have been in the past.