He will be the “right arm” of President Mahmoud Abbas.
The Palestinian head of state has appointed one of his loyalists, the economist Mohammad Mustafa as new Prime Minister, at a time when the weakened Palestinian Authority must place itself in the perspective of the post-war in Gaza.
Mohammad Mustafa, 69, was head of the Palestine Investment Fund (PIF).
Former economic advisor to President Abbas, he held senior positions at the World Bank in Washington for 15 years.
This international civil servant takes office in the middle of the war between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
“Urgent need for consensus”
At the end of February, Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh presented the resignation of his government, arguing for the need for a new policy taking into account “the new reality in the Gaza Strip” and the “urgent need for an inter-Palestinian consensus”.
A few days later, the various Palestinian movements – including the rivals of Hamas and Fatah, the party of Mahmoud Abbas – met in Moscow and announced their intention to get talks back on track to “unite” their voices under the banner of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).
Also read: Israel-Palestine: despite the resignation of the Palestinian government, the road to rapprochement is still long
Since fratricidal clashes in June 2007, the Palestinian leadership has been divided between the Palestinian Authority of Mahmoud Abbas, which exercises limited power in the West Bank, territory occupied since 1967 by Israel, while Hamas is in power in the Gaza Strip, today ravaged by war.
In recent months, many Palestinians have criticized President Abbas, 88, last elected in 2005, for his "helplessness" in the face of Israeli raids in the Gaza Strip.
The question of the role of the Palestinian Authority when the war ends remains largely unknown, due to its limited influence and the refusal of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to envisage a future Palestinian state.
“Acceptable for Americans”
For Palestinian analyst Abdul Majeed Sweilem, the appointment of Mohammad Mustafa represents an attempt to strengthen Palestinian institutions at a time when President Abbas is "besieged and under pressure" from Israel and Washington.
Mohammad Mustafa will probably be considered a profile “acceptable to the Americans,” adds the analyst.
Also read: Governance of Gaza after the war: how Washington and Tel Aviv are preparing for the post-Mahmoud Abbas era
But for political scientist Khalil Shaheen, the new Prime Minister is above all a loyalist of President Abbas.
“Mustafa has an economic vision, but he remains under the authority of President Abbas.
At the end of the day, he will remain his right arm,” he believes.
“Abbas wants to prove that he supports reforms”, but “with this appointment, he ensures that he has a Prime Minister who will not challenge him”, adds Khalil Shaheen.
The international community, led by the United States, supports the two-state solution as a perspective after the war and to establish peace in the region.
But for Washington, this implies "a renovated Palestinian authority", confided last month a senior White House official on condition of anonymity.