Mahmoud Abbas

Mahmoud Abbas, also known by the kunya Abu Mazen, has been the Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organisation since 11 November 2004 and became President of the Palestinian National Authority on 15 January 2005 on the Fatah ticket. Elected to serve until 9 January 2009, he unilaterally extended his term for another year. Rival political party Hamas announced it would not recognise the extension. Abbas was chosen as the President of the State of Palestine by the Palestine Liberation Organisation's Central Council on 23 November 2008, a job he had held unofficially since 8 May 2005. The current Israeli government led by Benjamin Netanyahu has made repeated requests for continued negotiations without preconditions, but Abbas has refused to negotiate unless Israel completely halts all settlement construction and natural growth, a demand that Israel wishes to discuss within the negotiations themselves. The United States, France, United Nations, and others have called on the Palestinian Authority to resume negotiations with Israel immediately, but these calls have been ignored.