Hussein al-Sheikh

Hussein al-Sheikh is a senior Palestinian political figure who has risen to become one of the most influential officials in the Palestinian Authority (PA) and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). A longtime member of Fatah and a close associate of President Mahmoud Abbas, he has held several key positions in civil affairs, party leadership, and national institutions. In 2025, he was appointed Vice President of the PLO, thereby formally and politically positioning him as Abbas’ designated successor.

Al-Sheikh was born to a family displaced from a village near Ramla during the 1948 war. He joined Fatah in his youth and became active in the Palestinian national movement during the 1970s. At age 17, he was arrested by Israeli authorities and spent 11 years in prison, where he learned Hebrew and emerged as a representative among Palestinian prisoners. He was released in 1988 and subsequently joined the Unified National Leadership of the Uprising during the First Intifada.

Following the establishment of the Palestinian Authority in 1994 under the Oslo Accords, al-Sheikh entered the PA security framework as an officer in the Preventive Security Force. By the late 1990s, he had become secretary-general of Fatah in the West Bank and was increasingly visible among senior party officials. During the turmoil of the Second Intifada, and especially after the arrest of Marwan Barghouti in 2002, he briefly served as Fatah’s top official in the West Bank. Internal party tensions later led to his removal from that role, but he reemerged in the mid-2000s within Mahmoud Abbas’s inner circle.

Al-Sheikh’s most significant institutional role began in 2007 when he became head of the PA’s General Authority of Civil Affairs, the body responsible for civilian coordination with Israel, including permits, movement, and administrative issues. The position granted him substantial influence in the West Bank and made him a central interlocutor with Israeli, American, and Arab officials. His long tenure in the post, which he held until 2025, earned him a reputation as one of the PA’s most pragmatic figures. However, it also made him controversial among segments of the Palestinian public who view security and civil coordination with Israel with skepticism.

In 2009, al-Sheikh was elected to Fatah’s Central Committee, further consolidating his role in the movement’s top leadership. His national profile expanded again in 2022 when he entered the PLO Executive Committee and was appointed its secretary-general, the organization’s highest position after the chairmanship. This move signaled Abbas’s intent to elevate him within the succession framework.

The process culminated in April 2025, when the PLO created the post of Vice President of the Palestinian Authority, which was filled immediately by al-Sheikh. In October that year, Abbas issued a constitutional declaration clarifying that al-Sheikh would assume interim leadership for up to 90 days should the presidency become vacant, pending the holding of elections. The appointment formalized al-Sheikh’s place at the top of the institutional hierarchy, though it did not resolve political rivalries within Fatah or the broader Palestinian arena.

Although widely viewed by international actors as a stable and experienced administrator, al-Sheikh lacks broad public support and is often associated with the PA’s existing political order. Nevertheless, he remains one of the most influential figures shaping Palestinian governance, diplomacy, and the future direction of the PA.

Sources: “Hussein al-Sheikh,” European Council on Foreign Relations.
“A look at the PLO’s new vice president, Hussein al-Sheikh,” AP, (April 26, 2025). 
“Abbas names Hussein al-Sheikh as temporary successor for PA presidency,” i24 News, (October 26, 2025).
“Hussein Al Sheikh,” Britannica, (October 27, 2025).
Jack Khouri, “Can Abbas’ Chosen Heir Lead the Palestinian Authority Without Any Public Support?” Haaretz, (November 13, 2025).

Photo: U.S. Department of State from United States, via Wikimedia Commons.