Ahmed Qurei, the first speaker of the Palestinian Parliament and one of the main negotiators of the Oslo peace agreements with Israel, died on Wednesday February 22 at the age of 85, announced his movement, Fatah.
Also known by his nom de guerre Abu Alaa, Mr. Qurei was a member of the central committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and responsible for economic issues within the PLO and Fatah when they opened up in January 1993 the secret negotiations that will lead to the historic handshake at the White House, eight months later, between the historic leader of the Palestinians, Yasser Arafat, and the Israeli Prime Minister at the time, Yitzhak Rabin.
Abbas praises tireless 'fighter'
After the signing of the Oslo Accords, he held several ministerial posts in Palestinian governments under the presidency of Arafat. With the return of the Palestinian leadership to Gaza, he was elected in 1996 as a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC), during the first legislative elections held by the Palestinian Authority.
He became its first president, a position he held until 2003, when Arafat appointed him prime minister to replace Mahmoud Abbas, who had resigned. He left the post of Prime Minister in 2006 after the victory of the Islamist movement Hamas in the legislative elections. He then became chief Palestinian negotiator in charge of peace talks with Israel, which had stalled for many years.
In a statement, Mr. Abbas saluted his memory by praising his qualities as a tireless "fighter" for the Palestinian cause.
