Abu Mazen to succeed Arafat
Maariv ^ | 10/28/4 | Marwan Athamna
 

Former PA premier Abu Mazen will temporarily take over Arafat’s authority while he is incapacitated, and will succeed him in the event that he does not recover from his current ailments.

Abu Ala, who replaced him as premier has agreed to support him. The two mew agreed that if necessary the Palestinian Legislative council will meet in emergency session in which all presidential authority will be passed to Abu Mazen.

Abu Mazen was appointed by Arafat as premier about a year ago under intense international pressure. He opposed Arafat’s decision to launch the current intifada, and is on record as saying the Palestinians would better serve their interests by negotiating with Israel.