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| The start of a ”real” Palestinian partnership |
President Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas has sworn in nine new ministers to his cabinet in a reshuffle condemned by the opposition Hamas as a “big error”.PA Prime minister Salam Fayyad was retained in that role but had to relinquish his influential second post as finance minister.
It is more than a year since Fatah and Hamas agreed a reconciliation deal in Cairo in an effort to end years of bitter infighting, but no meaningful agreement has since been secured.
The factions disagree over who to appoint in a new transitional unity government ahead of legislative elections scheduled to be held before the end of this month.
Hamas condemned the naming of a new cabinet as a "big error."
Fawzi Barhoum, a spokesman for the party, said the decision conflicted with the agreement between the parties.
Barhoum wrote on Facebook that Abbas was introducing a reshuffle which "reflects an insistence on misconduct and maintenance of illegitimacy and disagreement."
He added: "This patching policy will not bring any benefit to the Palestinian people and won’t be helpful because it is not approved by the Palestinian Legislative Council. What starts wrong ends wrong."
Abbas had said on Wednesday that the incoming government would “be dismissed immediately" if the political partnership with Hamas is implemented.
Fayyad was replaced as Finance Minister by Nabil Qassis, a former university president who like Fayyad is a political independent.
This is the second reshuffle for the Ramallah-based government, which was first established in June 2007 under Fayyad.
(Al-Akhbar, Ma'an)
Uprooted Palestinian 
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