RAMALLAH, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- The Revolutionary Council of the Palestinian National Liberation Movement (Fatah) announced on Saturday the decision to hold the movement's eighth general conference on May 14, its first such gathering since 2016.
The council described the conference as both an organizational requirement and a political necessity in a statement published by the Palestinian News Agency WAFA.
Originally scheduled for Dec. 17, 2023, the conference was postponed due to the war in the Gaza Strip which erupted on Oct. 7, 2023.
Fatah last held its general conference in late 2016 in Ramallah after a seven-year hiatus, electing new leadership bodies. If convened as planned, the upcoming one would be the third inside the Palestinian territories.
The council also decided to reinstate some expelled members on a case-by-case basis, excluding those accused of "crimes against the Palestinian people" or facing pending legal cases.
The statement reaffirmed the council's rejection of all forms of external political interference, and its commitment to the unity of Palestinian land, stressing the urgency of ending the "aggression against Gaza," ensuring humanitarian access, beginning reconstruction, reopening the Rafah crossing, and securing a full Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.
Under Fatah's statutes, the general conference is to be convened every five years to approve political and military programs and elect its decision-making bodies. ■
