Abbas to rule on quitting of official accused of normalizing Israel ties

The criticism came in response to the reported resignation of the head of the committee, Mohammed al-Madani.

By KHALED ABU TOAMEH
PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY President Mahmoud Abbas (photo credit: OSMAN ORSAL/REUTERS)
PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY President Mahmoud Abbas
(photo credit: OSMAN ORSAL/REUTERS)
A senior official with the Palestinian ruling Fatah faction on Sunday criticized the Palestinian leadership for failing to defend the work of the Palestinian Committee for Interaction with Israeli Society.
The criticism came in response to the reported resignation of the head of the committee, Mohammed al-Madani.
Established in 2012, Madani's committee is in charge of arranging meetings with Israelis.
Madani reportedly submitted his resignation to PA President Mahmoud Abbas last weekend.
Abbas has still not accepted the resignation of Madani, a Palestinian official told The Jerusalem Post.
“President Abbas will look into this matter in the coming days,” the official said.
A member of the committee told the Post that he was unaware of the alleged resignation.
“I think it was only a threat to resign,” the member said. “It’s not final, and there will be a meeting between President Abbas and Madani soon. If there’s a resignation, the president will decide whether to accept it or not.”
Madani and members of the committee have faced widespread criticism from Palestinians for attending a recent meeting organized by the Israeli Peace Parliament in Tel Aviv. They have also been strongly condemned for inviting Israeli journalists to a tour of Ramallah and interviews with Palestinian officials last week.
Most of the criticism surfaced on social media, where critics accused the committee and its members of promoting normalization with Israel. Social media users also called for punitive measures against Palestinians who hold meetings with Israelis and accused them of betraying the Palestinian people and issue.
Madani, a member of the Fatah Central Committee, is said to be angry with the Palestinian leadership for failing to condemn the smear campaign against him and his colleagues.
Tawfik Tirawi, a former commander of the PA General Intelligence Service and member of the Fatah Central Committee, said on Sunday that the Palestinian leadership bears responsibility for the repercussions of the social media campaign against al-Madani and the Committee for Interaction with Israeli Society.
Tirawi praised Madani for his work and said he was “shocked” by the failure of the Fatah Central Committee to come out in defense of the committee members. The entire Fatah leadership, and not Madani alone, is responsible for the work of the Committee for Interaction with Israeli Society, Tirawi said.
Tirawi pointed out that the Fatah Central Committee had entrusted Madani with heading the controversial committee “against his desire.”