Meet Mohammad Mustafa, likely incoming Palestinian PM

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After weeks of silence, President Mahmoud Abbas’ purported personal choice to head the 19th Palestinian government appears to be gaining traction. According to a senior Jordanian source in Amman who had a central role planning the recent Moscow summit attended by 14 Palestinian factions, the US-educated Mohammad Mustafa, former chairman of the Palestinian Investment Foundation, will be tapped by Abbas within days to assume the prime ministership and form a government. Mustafa has reportedly recently returned from a visit to Washington, allegedly with the blessing of the US administration, yet no details have been released about that trip.

A flurry of visits by officials to several Arab capitals in recent days — especially by PLO secretary Hussein Sheikh, who visited Jordan and Saudi Arabia for high-level talks — appears to be aimed at gaining Arab support for the appointment.

Conversations in WhatsApp groups made up mostly of Fatah and Palestinian Authority personnel on Monday and Tuesday indicate that the public anointing of the former chairman of the Palestinian Investment Foundation will take place within days.