Rami Hamdallah

Rami Hamdallah (Arabic: رامي الحمد الله, romanized: Rāmī al-Ḥamd Allāh; born 10 August 1958) is a Palestinian politician and academic. He served as prime minister of the Palestinian National Authority from 2014 to 2019[1] and president of An-Najah National University in Nablus.[2]

Rami Hamdallah
رامي الحمد الله
Prime Minister of the State of Palestine
In office
19 September 2013 – 14 April 2019
(Disputed with Ismail Haniyeh from 19 September 2013 until 2 June 2014)
PresidentMahmoud Abbas
Preceded byHimself
Succeeded byMohammad Shtayyeh
In office
6 June 2013 – 23 June 2013
(Disputed with Ismail Haniyeh)
Preceded bySalam Fayyad
Succeeded byHimself
Personal details
Born (1958-08-10) 10 August 1958
Anabta, West Bank, Jordan
NationalityPalestinian
Political partyFatah
Alma materUniversity of Jordan
University of Manchester
Lancaster University
ReligionSunni Islam

On 2 June 2013, the Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas named him to succeed Salam Fayyad as prime minister.[3] His appointment was not recognized by Hamas, who were not consulted in the decision.[4] He is a member of Fatah;[5] however, the BBC states that he is a political independent.[6] On 20 June 2013, Hamdallah tendered his resignation, which Abbas accepted on 23 June.[7] Six weeks after that, Abbas asked Hamdallah to form a new government, which he did on 19 September 2013.[8] He was appointed the head of the unity government on 2 June 2014,[9] a position from which he resigned on 29 January 2019.[10]

Early life and education

Rami Hamdallah was born in Anabta in the northern Palestine on 10 August 1958.[11] He graduated from the University of Jordan in 1980 and received his MA from the University of Manchester in 1982. Hamdallah completed a PhD in English linguistics at Lancaster University in 1988.[12]

Career

Hamdallah, widely known as Abū Wālid ('Father of Walid', after one of his deceased children) is a professor at An-Najah National University. He was hired in 1982 as English instructor, and at the University he got to know his future wife.[13] He was appointed president of the university in 1998.[14] During his 15 years' term, he tripled the student enrollment, which now numbers 20,000 students on 4 campuses. He also opened a 400-bed teaching hospital. He served as the secretary general of Palestinian Central Elections Commission from 2002 to 2013.[15] He was the commission's deputy chairman in 2011.[4][16] He was sworn in as prime minister on 6 June 2013[17] and replaced Salam Fayyad in the post.[18] Only two weeks into the job, however, Hamdallah tendered his resignation, reportedly as result of interference with Hamdallah's authority by Abbas' aides.[19] On 23 June 2013, Abbas accepted Hamdallah's resignation, but appointed him as the head of the interim government.[20] Hamdallah's resignation was praised by Mohammed Dajani, the founder of the Wastia Movement of Moderate Islam in the West Bank, who stated that "I respect him for taking this decision. They thought he would be window dressing and he would not accept that."[21]

Six weeks after Hamdallah's resignation, Abbas asked him to form a new government, which he did on 19 September 2013.[8]

On 13 March 2018, Hamdallah survived an assassination attempt during his visit to the Gaza Strip.[22]

On 29 January 2019 he and his government handed their resignation to President Abbas, who accepted the request on the following day.[23] But was replaced by Mohammad Shtayyeh in April 2019.[24]

Personal life

Three of his children, 11-year-old twins and a 9-year-old boy, were killed in a car accident in 2000. He and his wife had another daughter afterwards.[14]

References
  1. Joe Dyke (10 March 2019). "Hamas further sidelined by appointment of new PA premier Shtayyeh". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 10 March 2019.
  2. "Faculty Profile at An-Najah University". An Najah University. Retrieved 2 June 2013.
  3. "Abbas to appoint Rami Hamdallah as next Palestinian PM". Ynet. 2 June 2013. Retrieved 2 June 2013.
  4. "Rami Hamdallah Appointed Prime Minister Of Palestine By President Mahmoud Abbas". Huffington Post. 2 June 2013.
  5. "Abbas names new Palestinian prime minister". Al Jazeera English. 2 June 2013. Retrieved 2 June 2013.
  6. "Mahmoud Abbas appoints new Palestinian PM Rami Hamdallah". BBC. 3 June 2013. Retrieved 6 June 2013.
  7. "Abbas accepts resignation of Palestinian PM Rami Hamdallah". BBC. 23 June 2013. Retrieved 23 June 2013.
  8. "New Palestinian Authority government carbon copy of old". Los Angeles Times. 19 September 2013. Archived from the original on 24 September 2013. Retrieved 19 February 2014.
  9. "Palestinian unity government sworn in by Mahmoud Abbas". BBC. 2 June 2014. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
  10. "Palestinian President Abbas accepts PM Hamdallah's resignation". Al Jazeera. 29 January 2019. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
  11. H - Personalities. Palestinian Academic Society for the Study of International Affairs. Archived 29 July 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  12. "New Palestinian Prime Minister studied at Lancaster". news.lancs.ac.uk. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
  13. Rudoren, Jodi (3 June 2013). "Palestinian Authority's New Premier Admired as 'Conscience'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
  14. "Rami Hamdallah | Biography & Facts". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
  15. Bobb, Scott (3 June 2013). "Palestinians Give Mixed Reaction to New Prime Minister". Voice of America. Jerusalem. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  16. Abukhater, Maher; Sanders, Edmund (2 June 2013). "Palestinian Authority picks Rami Hamdallah as prime minister". Los Angeles Times.
  17. Kershner, Isabel (20 June 2013). "New Palestinian prime minister submits resignation after two weeks". The Boston Globe. Jerusalem. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  18. Browning, Noah (20 June 2013). "New Palestinian prime minister offers resignation". Reuters. Ramallah. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  19. Khoury, Jack (23 June 2013). "Abbas accepts resignation of newly appointed Palestinian PM Hamdallah". Haaretz. Retrieved 25 June 2013.
  20. Basil, Yousuf (24 June 2013). "Abbas accepts resignation of Palestinian prime minister". CNN. Retrieved 3 July 2013.
  21. Greenwood, Phoebe (20 June 2013). "Palestinian PM Rami Hamdallah tenders resignation". London: The Telegraph. Retrieved 25 June 2013.
  22. BBC, BBC (13 March 2018). "Palestinian PM Hamdallah survives Gaza explosion". BBC. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  23. The New Arab, El Arabi Jdid (30 January 2019). "Palestinian president Abbas accepts prime minister Hamdallahs resignation". The New Arab. Retrieved 31 January 2019.
  24. staff, T. O. I.; Agencies. "Abbas swears in new PA government led by his Fatah ally, Mohammad Shtayyeh". www.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
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