Mr. Mohammed Shtayyeh. (Photo: israelnationalnews.com)

Shtayeh, who holds a doctorate in economies and development from Sussex University, is a member of the Central Committee of Fatah, the ruling Palestinian nationalist political party led by President Abbas. He has also been a minister in the Palestinian economic council for the past decade.

The Palestinian leadership has been divided between Fatah and Hamas since 2006, when the latter scored a landslide victory in parliamentary elections in Gaza. Hamas has since been running the coastal enclave, while Fatah has been based in the autonomous parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Previous reconciliation attempts by the two sides to form a power-sharing unity government in Gaza and the West Bank have all failed.