Yasser Arafat vil beholde makta:

Palestinian President Yasser Arafat has appointed 58 loyalists to key positions in the Palestinian Authority (PA), the Israeli Itim news agency reported Friday.
The report quoted a senior Palestinian official who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The official said Arafat was seeking to 2_kommentartain his influence in the PA. He said new Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) and other ministers were «outraged».
The Palestinian Basic Law authorizes only the prime minister or his ministers to appoint ministry staff.
According to the official, most of the appointees – members of Arafat’s ruling Fatah party – were given positions in the interior ministry, which includes crucial control over the Palestinian security organizations.

Etter denne «basic law» kan statsministeren utnevne staben uten å konsultere presidenten.