Ahmed Majdalani, a senior member of the PLO Executive Committee, has stated that the Palestinian National Council (PNC-the PLO legislative body) will convene in April to discuss a possible settlement in the Gaza Strip, unity on the Palestinian front, and the creation of a new position - Deputy Chair of the PLO Executive Committee. The current chairman of the PLO Executive Committee is PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, and the new position will indicate a possible successor. Yoni Ben-Menachema, a senior researcher at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs and Arab affairs pundit, says that behind the scenes there is currently a fierce struggle over the identity of the candidate for the new position. According to him, senior Fatah movement officials revealed that the US is applying significant pressure to appoint the head of PA Intelligence Majid Faraj, who is close to the CIA and oversees close security cooperation with the American agency. In an article published by the Jerusalem Center, Ben-Menachem notes that the move marks a turning point for the PA which is trying to improve its diplomatic standing following the war in Gaza and after years of Abbas averting calls for reforms and new blood in the leadership, it is now forced to fit itself to the new political reality.
