A new start for Fatah?
The once-dominant political force is convening for the first time in 20 years.
Fatah is due to hold its congress – the first in 20 years – in the West Bank town of Bethlehem from August 4 to 6.
Once the dominant force in Palestinian politics, Fatah is now reeling from accusations of corruption, nepotism and inefficiency. There is also a growing internal fight between what is seen as the movement’s old guard and younger members who want to take over.
And most recently, Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, was accused by Farouk al-Kaddoumi, a senior member of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), of conspiring to kill Yasser Arafat, the late PLO leader.
So, can the congress help Fatah to unify and shape a new approach toward rivals Hamas?
Inside Story presenter Nick Clark is joined by Mustafa Barghouti, the secretary-general of the Palestinian National Initiative, Abdul-Sattar Qassem, a professor of political science at An-Najah National University, and Ian Black, the Middle East editor at Britain’s Guardian newspaper.
This episode of Inside Story aired from Sunday, August 2, 2009.