The Fatah movement in the Palestinian territories and abroad is living through a historic and difficult stage, given its widening differences. The latter is not with Hamas — as is presumed — but between two essential Fatah currents, one led by the president of the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas, and the other led by Mohammed Dahlan, a member of the Legislative Council who has been separated from the movement since June 2012. Al-Monitor’s Daoud Kuttab wrote on Oct. 30 about Dahlan’s possible return to the West Bank, but discounted the possibility that Dahlan would return to Palestinian politics, at least in the near future.

The differences between Abbas and Dahlan have reached the “bone-breaking” stage, as described to Al-Monitor by a source close to the Palestinian presidential headquarters. This quarrel heated up after Dahlan, who lives in Dubai, put a lot of effort, using his money and his political connections, into surpassing Abbas within Fatah’s ranks. Perhaps what made things worse between them was when Abbas learned that Dahlan had managed to attract a number of Fatah leaders to his side, according to the same source.

The power balance

The same source, who spoke with Al-Monitor from inside the Ramallah “headquarters,” stressed that Abbas enjoys clear advantages over Dahlan: Abbas is the president, who is followed by the government, headed by Rami Hamdallah. So Abbas can give and withhold money from whomever he wants, and appoint whomever he wants to any position. Abbas is also the head of the Fatah movement.