Palestinians create role for a vice president and possible successor to aging leader Abbas

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Palestinians create role for a vice president and possible successor to aging leader Abbas

2025-04-25 03:44 Last Updated At：03:51

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — The Palestine Liberation Organization on Thursday announced the creation of a vice presidency under 89-year-old leader Mahmoud Abbas, who has not specified a successor.

The PLO Central Council's decision came as Abbas seeks greater relevance and a role in postwar planning for the Gaza Strip after having been largely sidelined by the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

After a two-day meeting, the council voted to create the role of vice chairman of the PLO Executive Committee. This position would also be referred to as the vice president of the State of Palestine, which the Palestinians hope will one day receive full international recognition.

The expectation is that whoever holds that role would be the front-runner to succeed Abbas — though it’s unclear when or exactly how it would be filled. Abbas is to choose his vice president from among the other 15 members of the PLO's executive committee.

The PLO is the internationally recognized representative of the Palestinian people and oversees the Western-backed Palestinian Authority, which exercises limited autonomy in less than half of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Abbas has led both entities for two decades.

Abbas is still seen internationally as the leader of the Palestinians and a partner in any effort to revive the peace process, which ground to a halt when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu returned to office in 2009.

But the chain-smoking political veteran has clung to power since his mandate expired in 2009 and has not named a successor. Polls in recent years have shown plummeting support for him and his Fatah party.

Western and Arab donor countries have demanded reforms in the Palestinian Authority for it to play a role in postwar Gaza. The authority is deeply unpopular and faces long-standing allegations of corruption and poor governance.

Appointing an heir apparent could address some of those concerns, though it is unclear if Thursday's decision will appease the critics. Abbas is to choose his vice president from a body that is dominated by loyalists and will have the authority to fire his deputy as well. The measure passed by a vote of 170-1, with one abstention.

Hamas, which won the last national elections in 2006, is not in the PLO. Hamas seized control of Gaza from Abbas’ forces in 2007, and reconciliation attempts between the rivals have repeatedly failed.

Hamas touched off the war in Gaza when its militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 people hostage. Israel responded with an air and ground campaign that has killed over 51,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the territory’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many of the dead were civilians or combatants.

Follow AP’s war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war

Timberwolves beat Warriors in Game 5 to reach Western Conference finals for 2nd straight year

2025-05-15 13:34 Last Updated At：13:40

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Anthony Edwards approached for a handshake during Julius Randle's postgame TV interview, the duo putting a seal on another dominant series for Minnesota in these NBA playoffs.

Randle scored 29 points on 13-for-18 shooting to send the Timberwolves to the Western Conference finals for the second straight year with a 121-110 victory over the Golden State Warriors in Game 5 on Wednesday night.

“I just try to do my best to read the game in the best way I can,” Randle said. “They threw different coverages at us all series long.”

Edwards had 22 points and 12 assists for the sixth-seeded Wolves, who will face the Denver-Oklahoma City winner next. They could get five days off, if the Nuggets beat the Thunder on Thursday to force a Game 7 in the other West semifinal series.

Brandin Podziemski had a playoff career-high 28 points for the Warriors, who again played without star Stephen Curry because of the hamstring strain that forced him out of the second quarter in Game 1 and took the heart out of their entire offensive operation.

“I don’t want to take anything away from what Minnesota just accomplished,” coach Steve Kerr said. “No sense in even talking about Steph.”

Jonathan Kuminga provided another energy boost off the bench with 26 points, but Podziemski’s performance came too late and the production from Jimmy Butler and Buddy Hield was consistently too little after they led the series-opening win.

Golden State presented far more of a defensive challenge than the Los Angeles Lakers did for Minnesota during their five-game series in the first round, but the collection of every-level scorers the Wolves can throw at an opponent when they’re moving the ball and pushing the pace simply wore down the Warriors over the course of the series.

Rudy Gobert was a force around the rim with 17 points, Mike Conley had 16 points and eight assists, and Donte DiVincenzo snapped out of a slump with 13 points as the Wolves shot a staggering 77% on 2-pointers (36 for 47). They set franchise postseason records for assists (36) and field goal percentage (62.8%).

Series close-out games can sometimes be the toughest to win, but the Wolves played with a ferocity paired with their shooting touch that all but portended victory. Randle kept up his superb postseason, providing a constant source of energy and production.

The Wolves stretched their lead as high as 25 points in the third quarter, large enough to withstand a late Warriors push that pulled them to 99-90 with 7:11 left. But Edwards answered with a 3, and the crowd started mixing “Wolves in 5! Wolves in 5!” chants in with the roars for each made basket that got them closer to advancing.

“There is no satisfaction,” Edwards said. “We just got here.”

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA