The Palestinian government
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Orient House in Jerusalem has been a key symbol of Palestinian aspirations for an independent state. ( Full story)
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In 1991, talks between the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and Israel began in Washington D.C. In 1994, an agreement to begin the process of autonomy for the Palestinian territories was signed in Oslo, Norway.
The Palestinian Authority is the limited self-rule government for parts of the West Bank and Gaza that was established under the terms of the so-called Oslo Accords.
On January 20, 1996, Palestinians held their first elections. Yasser Arafat was elected president of the PA (the Palestinians refer to it as the Palestinian National Authority), and 88 others were elected to sit on a Palestinian Legislative Council. Arafat established a Cabinet for the Palestinian Authority that was approved by the legislative council.
Arafat proposed changes to the PA's basic law, which functions like a constitution, in February 2003 under pressure from the so-called international "quartet" - the United States, Russia, the European Union, and the United Nations. The United States said reform was necessary to implementing its “road map” for peace in the Middle East.
Central to these changes is the weakening of Arafat’s autocratic grip through reform of the PA's politics, finances and security forces.
Under the Oslo Accords, the Palestinian territories were divided into three kinds of areas - Area As, where the Palestinians were in administrative and security control; Area Bs where the Palestinians had administrative control but Israel maintained security, and Area Cs, where Israel had both administrative and security control.
There was a security chief for the West Bank and another for Gaza. Prior to the beginning of the Al Aqsa Intifada, Israeli and Palestinian security services worked in uneasy cooperation with Israel often charging that the Palestinians helped or ignored terror attacks on Israelis. After the Al Aqsa Intifada began, that system unraveled as Israeli forces moved into most cities in the West Bank and staged incursions into Gaza.
The position of prime minister was created in March 2003. After a power struggle with Arafat, Mahmoud Abbas accepted the post, appointed new cabinet ministers, and his government was approved by the Palestinian legislature. Arafat retained the final say over negotiations with Israel. Four months later, Abbas resigned, accusing Arafat of undermining his authority by refusing to give him control of the Palestinian Authority's security organizations.
After Arafat died in November 2004, Abbas was elected to replace him as chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization. Arafat's Fatah movement also picked Abbas to be its candidate in the race for Palestinian Authority president. In January 2005, Abbas, also known as Abu Mazen, 69, claimed victory in the vote to replace Arafat.
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