Top Abbas Aide ‘Recorded Slamming Palestinian Authority President’

A man widely seen as a likely political heir to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas was caught cursing out Abbas and other members of the PA leadership in a secret recording leaked to and published by the Hamas-affiliated Shehab news website.

Hussein al-Sheikh, Palestine Liberation Organization Executive Committee secretary general, called Abbas the “son of 66 whores,” and said that Abbas “is a partner in the chaos and has an interest in maintaining it for his own survival,” the Associated Press reported.

It is unclear, AP said, whether the chaos cited by al-Sheikh means the recent uptick in violence between Israelis and Palestinians or the wave of protests that erupted in the West Bank last year following the death of a PA critic in Palestinian custody.

Al-Sheikh also criticized Abbas for not designating a successor. The recording is believed to be several years old. Abbas was elected to a four-year term as president of the PA in 2005 but still remains in the position as new elections have been repeatedly delayed.

Al-Sheikh can also be heard saying Abbas was upset by the attention Israel and the US had given to leading Palestinian politicians and criticized those who were planning for the day when the octogenarian leader was no longer in charge. These include spy chief Majed Faraj, whom al-Sheikh slammed in a profanity-laced tirade over his contacts with officials in Gaza.