Succession plan in place: Mahmoud Abbas announces interim replacement 

Palestinian Authority President and Yasser Arafat's replacement, Mahmoud Abbas, known as Abu Mazen, issued a statement on Wednesday stating that the chairman of the Palestinian National Council, Rawi Fattah, will temporarily assume his position "if the position becomes vacant."

According to a report in Al-Arabiya, Abbas said in a statement that the move was made out of awareness of the sensitive stage in which his nation finds itself. "In fulfillment of our historical and constitutional responsibility to protect the Palestinian political system," Abbas said, adding that the goal is to preserve the integrity of its lands and ensure its security.

According to him, the war has caused them to be in an existential threat. He argued that the decision came from our belief that the honor of the nation is nothing more than a reflection of the dignity of each of its individuals, which is the basis for building the nation.

"Human freedom, the rule of law and its strengthening. The values of equality, pluralistic democracy and social justice are the basis for the legitimacy of any system of government that will lead the country to the next period in the history of our people," Abbas concluded.