Abu Mazen pumped new blood into the Palestinian cabinet, the first ever to be headed by a premier

By Yasser al-Banna, IOL Palestinian Correspondent

GAZA CITY, April 30 (IslamOnline.net) – Several new faces joined the new 20-member Palestinian government led by Mahmoud Abbas, aka Abu Mazen, which was approved Tuesday, April 29, by the Palestinian Legislative Council.

Following are some insights into the new Palestinian cabinet.

Mohammad Dahlan - Minister of State For National Security

Born in 1961, Colonel Mohammad Dahlan is a member of Fatah's revolutionary council. He joined the PLO in Tunis and played a key role in igniting the first Palestinian Intifada. He came back to the Palestinian territories in 1994 and set up the preventive security agency.

He took part in talks with the Israelis on the security issues in accordance with the Oslo agreements. His security agency rounded up hundreds of Palestinian fighters and confiscated their weapons.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon held Hebrew-speaking Dahlan accountable for the attack on an Israeli bus in Gaza in November 2000. He resigned on November 5, 2001 protesting the policies adopted by the Palestinian Authority (PA). Shortly afterwards, Palestinian President Yasser Arafat appointed him as a national security adviser.

Nabil Shaath - Minister Of Foreign Affairs

Shaath was born in 1938 in Yafa. He became an Egyptian citizen in 1965 and studied in Alexandria. He earned a PhD in economics from the Wharton School, Pennsylvania University.

Shaath served as a member of the PLO since 1970 and then headed of PLO planning centre (1971-81).

He was the head of the first Palestinian delegation to the U.N. and a member of the Madrid delegation and played a leading role in the Oslo process.

Shaath was one of the architects of the Gaza-Jericho formula and played a pivotal role in Taba negotiations. He is also a Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) member.

He last served as Minister for Planning and International cooperation in the Palestinian Authority.

Nabil Amr - Minister Of Information

Born in 1947, Nabil Mahmoud Amr is Arafat's information adviser and a member of the secretariat general of the syndicate of the Palestinian writers and journalists.

He represented the PLO in the former Soviet Union and was appointed as an ambassador in Moscow between 1988 and 1993.

In 1999, Amr was appointed as a minister for the parliamentary affairs in the PA but resigned on November 4, 2002 following a quarrel with Arafat. He was also a vocal supporter for appointing a Palestinian prime minister.

Ziyad Abu Amr - Minister Of Culture

Born in 1950 in Gaza City, Ziyad Abu Amr received his primary education in Egyptian schools and secondary in Damascus.

He holds a PhD in international relations and political science from George Town University in the U.S.A.

He joined the Palestinian academia as a professor of political science at Beir Zeit University. He was elected as an independent legislator in 1996.

Abd el-Karim Abu Salah - Minister Of Justice

Born in 1955 in Ghan Yunis, Abd el-Karim Abu Salah holds a B.A. in law from Cairo University in 1977 and worked as a lawyer in the Gaza Strip. He is a lawmaker and heads the parliament's committee of legal affairs.

He was arrested by the Israeli army in 1980s and sentenced to five years in prison of which he spent two years.

Yahia Ashour - Minister of Public Works

Born in1940 in Gaza City, Yahia Assad Mahmoud Ashour took a leading part in establishing Fatah organization in 1960.

After the defeat of 1967, he took some military courses in China along with some of Fatah cadres. He headed Fatah offshoot in Lebanon from 1967 till 1973.

He holds the post of the secretary general of Fatah's revolutionary council since 1989.

Kamal al-Sharafi  - Minister Of Health

Born in 1955 in Jabalia refugee camp, Kamal Al-Abd Mohammed al-Sharafi holds the post of the head of the League of Palestinian Doctors for Human Rights and deputy head of Al-Aqsa University's board of trustees.

He is an MP for the governorate of northern Gaza City. Since 1996, he has been elected as the head of the parliament's committee of human rights.

Azzam al-Shawa - Minister Of Energy & Natural Resources

Born in 1963 in Kuwait, Azzam Abdul Kareem al-Shawa holds a B.A. in mathematics from Tennessee University in the U.S. He has been working as the Arab Bank's coordinator in Gaza City since 1994.

He is the treasurer of the Palestinian investment fund and secretary general of the society of Palestinian accountants.

Abdul Fatah Hamayel - Minister Of Youth and Sport

Born in 1950 in Ramallah, Abdul Fatah Hamayel was elected to parliament in 1996 and serves as a rapporteur of the parliament's committee of security.

Gamal al-Shubaki - Minister of Local Government

Born in 1952 in Al-Khalil (Hebron), Gamal al-Shubaki is the head of the parliament's economic committee. He was jailed by the Israeli occupation for 10 years.

He is a member of Fatah's revolutionary council and holds a B.A. in geography from Beirut University.

Hisham Abdul Razek - Minister of Refugees' Affairs

Born in 1953, Hisham Abdul Razek is one of Fatah's leaders in Jabalia refugee camp. He spent 21 years in Israeli jails and was freed in 1994.

Arafat appointed him the head of the PLO's refugees' affairs society, which later became a ministry.

Entsar al-Wazier - Minister of Social Affairs   

Born in 1941, Mrs. Entsar al-Wazier, aka Umm Jihad, played a key role in laying the foundation of Fatah in 1960 and set up an underground women's resistance cell in 1965.

She took part in the first conference of the Palestinian women, held in Al-Quds (occupied Jerusalem) in 1965 and became the secretary general of the general federation of Palestinian women from 1980 to 1985.

She was a vocal supporter of women's role in the PA's institutions and became a member of the national political council in 1974.

She was elected as a member of Fatah's revolutionary council in 1980 and as the deputy secretary general of the council in 1983.

She has been appointed by Arafat as the minister of social affairs since 1994.

Yasser Abd Rabbu - Minister Of Cabinet Affairs

Born in 1944 in Yafa, Yasser Abd Rabbu has been a close associate to Arafat, who appointed him as the minister of culture and information in 1994.

He played a pivotal role in Taba negotiations with the Israelis and took part in Oslo and Madrid negotiations.

Na'eem Abu al-Hems - Minister of Education

Born in 1955, Na'eem Abu al-Hems has been the undersecretary of the PLO's ministry of education. He is a Fatah activist and holds a PhD in education from San Francisco University in the U.S.A.

Sallam Fayyad - Minister of Finance

Born in 1952 in Tulkaram, Sallam Fayyad worked for the World Bank from 1987 to 1995 and is a senior official in the Arab bank.

He holds a PhD in economics from Calta University. He has been serving as the PLO's minister of finance since 2001.

Saadi al-Karnaz - Minister of Transports

Born in 1958, Saadi al-Karnaz was appointed by Arafat as the minister of industry. He holds a B.A. in mathematics from Al-Mansoura University in Egypt in addition to a PhD from Broadway University in the U.S.

He worked as the head of mathematics and statistics department at Al-Azhar University in Gaza City and was elected as an MP in 1996.

Ghassan al-Khattib - Minister of Labor

Born in 1954 in Nablus, Ghassan al-Khattib is a prominent figure in the Palestinian communist party and worked as the head of the Ramallah communications and information center.   

He worked as a lecturer of cultural studies in Beir Zeit University from 1974 to 1977 and joined the Palestinian delegation in Madrid peace negotiations.

Maher al-Masri - Minister of Economy

Born in 1946 in Nablus, Maher al-Masri is one of Arafat's close associates. He is a prominent businessman and has investments in Beirut, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Nablus.

Nabil Qisis - Minister Of Planning

Born in 1945 to a Christian family, Nabil Qisis was the minister of tourism in the PA and also worked as a minister without portfolio. He orchestrated the project of "Bethlehem 2000."  He holds a PhD in nuclear physics.

He was appointed as a professor of physics in Beir Zeit University in 1982 and worked as the deputy president of the university for academic affairs from 1984 to 1989. He also joined the Palestinian delegation in Madrid conference in 1991.

Saeb Erekat - Minister Of State For Negotiations

Born in 1955, Saeb Erekat studied political science in the University of San Francisco in the U.S. and holds a PhD in the science of negotiations from Britain's Bradford University.

He returned to the Palestinian territories to lecture in Political Science at the An-Najah University in Nablus.

Erekat holds the post of Minister of Local Government in the PA.

He was a member of the Madrid negotiations. He resigned from his post in the PA in 1993 over Oslo agreement but he withdrew his resignation shortly afterwards.

Arafat also appointed Erekat to head the Palestinian Negotiation Steering and Monitoring Committee.

Hakam Belawi - Cabinet Secretary General

Born in 1934 in Tulkaram, Hakam Belawi was the PLO's ambassador to Libya from 1973 to 1975 and to Tunisia from 1983 to 1994. He is a member of Fatah's central committee.

He returned to the Palestinian territories to be a member in the council of national security from 1994 to 1996. He was elected to parliament in 1996.