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Mar. 11, 2003 Palestinian PM is part of a US conspiracy, says Hamas By KHALED ABU TOAMEH Yasser Arafat's decision to appoint a prime minister for the Palestinian Authority is in the context of an American scheme aimed at ending the intifada and imposing the road map plan on the Palestinian people, according to a statement issued by Hamas on Tuesday. "It's unfortunate that the institutions of the PLO and the PA are hostage to American-Zionist pressure," the statement added, reflecting the view of Palestinian hardliners who have strongly criticized Arafat for succumbing to pressure from Israel and the US....

23:39 | Arafat names Mahmoud Abbas as Palestinian prime minister (UPDATE) By KHALED ABU TOAMEH Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat has decided to appoint the PLO's second-in-command, Mahmoud Abbas, as prime minister of the PA. The Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council, Ahmed Qurie, announced Thursday night that Arafat offered the job to Abbas, who is also known as Abu Mazen. A senior Palestinian official in Ramallah confirmed that Abbas was offered the job. The official would not say whether Abbas accepted the offer. He said Arafat's offer to Abbas followed a series of consultations with several Palestinian officials, including...

Mar. 3, 2003 Arafat: 'Conspiracy' hinders appointment of Palestinian prime minister By KHALED ABU TOAMEH Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat on Monday claimed that a "conspiracy" was behind the delay in his decision to appoint a prime minister for the PA. "There is a conspiracy to abort the implementation of decisions the PA has taken to name a prime minister," Arafat told reporters shortly after meeting in Ramallah with representatives of the Quartet, which comprises the US, EU, UN and Russia. He accused Israel of plotting to thwart planned meetings of the Palestinian Legislative Council and the PLO Central Committee...