Amid growing discontent among Palestinians with President Mahmoud Abbas and the ruling Fatah movement, Fatah members in the Gaza Strip have announced their resignation.

On June 14, the east Gaza region of Fatah announced in a statement its resignation as its demands to pay attention to the Fatah members’ issues continue to be disregarded amid procrastination in giving employees their rights.

The statement also referred to “the Palestinian government’s unfair treatment of the two parts of the country despite the issuance of presidential decrees in this regard, let alone the procrastination in delivering on the promises made by the movement’s leadership regarding the 2005 file, the organizational framework, forced retirement, financial retirement and military retirement, among other outstanding issues.”

The resignations come at a tense time for Abbas and Fatah, with critics claiming the authorities employ a policy of alienation and exclusion against whoever opposes the octogenarian president's policies. On March 8, Abbas dismissed Nasser al-Kidwa, a member of Fatah’s Central Committee. On June 12, 2011, he had dismissed Mohammed Dahlan, a member of the movement’s central committee. Abbas’ opponents argue the dismissals were not made within Palestinian Authority (PA) regulations, but rather were unilateral decisions by Abbas.