Personal Info
- Country of residence: Portugal
Information
Sharif Ali Hussein Mashal, known as “Abbas Zaki,” was born in the town of Sa’ir in the Hebron Governorate on November 12, 1942. He is married and has five sons and one daughter. He earned a bachelor’s degree in law from Damascus University. He worked as a teacher in several schools, including Khalil al-Sakakini School in Jerusalem, the Modern School, and the North Shuna School in Irbid between 1963 and 1967.
He joined the Fatah movement in 1962, became a member of its Revolutionary Council in 1970, a political commissioner for the Yarmouk forces, and a political commissioner for the central apparatus of Fatah between (1971-1974). He was appointed as the representative of the Palestine Liberation Organization in South Yemen in 1974, and received the title of Dean of the Arab Diplomatic Corps in Aden in 1977, and Dean of the Arab and foreign diplomatic corps between (1980-1986). He became a member of the Palestinian National Council in 1986, Secretary of the Higher Committee for the Intifada, a member of the leadership of the Western Sector, and Director-General of the Department of National and International Relations in the Palestine Liberation Organization in 1989.
He was elected as a member of the Fatah Central Committee in 1989, and was the movement's official in Jordan in 1993, and deputy to the Commissioner-General for Mobilization and Organization. He was elected as a member of the Legislative Council in 1996, and chaired the Education and Social Affairs Committee and the Reform Committee in the Legislative Council. He was appointed Commissioner for Foreign Relations in Fatah in 2003, and head of the PLO representative office in Lebanon between (2005-2009), and was responsible for the Commission for Arab and Chinese Relations in the Fatah movement. He was re-elected as a member of the Fatah Central Committee in 2009 and 2016. He participated in a number of Arab and international conferences as a representative of the PLO, and as a special envoy of the President of the Palestinian Authority to a number of heads of state.
He believes that the Israeli occupation has destroyed the two-state solution and is working towards a state devoid of Palestinians. Zaki rules out any political solution with the right-wing Israeli government. He considers the current situation of the Fatah movement difficult due to the occupation's disregard for the agreements signed with the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), but believes it is striving to move forward resolutely to achieve its goal. He believes that popular and political resistance, along with diplomatic efforts, are the most effective tools at present, but he emphasizes the importance of maintaining all options for resisting the occupation, including the military option, but only according to the circumstances and in accordance with international law. He believes in national unity as the path to achieving the Palestinian dream and calls for overcoming the division and agreeing on a unified political program. He demands the revitalization of the PLO through holding elections for the Palestinian National Council with the participation of Hamas and Islamic Jihad, considering them partners in the homeland, in decision-making, and in destiny.
He believes the future of the Palestinian Authority hinges on Israel's adherence to agreements, and he emphasizes the commitment to Palestinian principles: the establishment of an independent state within the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, and the return and compensation of refugees. He also believes the Arab and regional environment is experiencing a terrifying decline due to the "creative chaos" instigated by the United States.
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