Salam Fayyad, former Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority, emphasizes the importance of Palestinians focusing on their own interests rather than Israel’s. He believes that no national liberation movement should be influenced by the desires of its enemy.
Fayyad also insists that for the Palestinian Authority to gain legitimacy among its people, the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) must include Hamas and Islamic Jihad in its membership. Without a national consensus, the Palestinian Authority cannot effectively govern the Gaza Strip after Israel’s war on Gaza concludes. Otherwise, any hopes for a “revitalised” Palestinian leadership by the United States would be futile.