After absorbing the shock of Donald Trump’s election to the presidency of the United States, it is time for the Palestinian Authority (PA) to get practical. President Mahmoud Abbas has put together a steering committee to prepare for Trump entering the White House and outline the PA's initiatives in the United Nations over the coming year.
The members of the committee include Saeb Erekat, a member of the Fatah Steering Committee who was also responsible for negotiations with Israel; Maen Areikat, who was the PLO’s representative in Washington; and Husam Zomlot, who is slated to replace Areikat in the American capital. Noted “Americanologists” who will be advising the team include Palestinian Ambassador to the United Nations Riyad Mansour; former UN ambassador and relative of late PLO leader Yasser Arafat Nasser al-Qudwa, who is considered close to Abbas; politician Hanan Ashrawi; senior Fatah leader Mohammad al-Shattiyeh, who Abbas is rumored to be planning to make his deputy during the upcoming Fatah conference; and senior Fatah official Azzam al-Ahmad.