The appointment of Rami Hamdallah as the new Palestinian Authority prime minister will be "another illegitimate and unconstitutional government which will run the West Bank without the necessary approval of the Palestinian Legislative Council," the deputy head of the Palestinian Legislative Council told Gulf News on Monday.
Hassan Khraishah elaborated to say that his appointment is a "hindrance" to Palestinian internal reconciliation and the move has "returned us all to square number one," Gulf News reported.
Although Hamdallah is officially a political independent, he is perceived by Palestinians as being close to the Fatah movement.
“Not even a single Palestinian would object to Hamdallah’s appointment as a prime minister under a national unity government which includes both Fatah and Hamas," Khraishah told Gulf News.
The head of the Political Science Department at Al Najah National University in Nablus voiced similar concerns, touting Hamdallah as "a Fatah cadre not a technocrat."
"His Ramallah government will be a pure Fatah government,” Abdul Sattar Qasim was quoted by Gulf News as saying.