Hani al-Hasan

Hani al-Hasan

 

 

Hani al-Hasan [Abu Tariq, Abu-l-Hasan] Fatah leader. Born 1937, Haifa, refugee in Yarmuk camp, near Damascus, where he organised an Islamist slate, Shabab al-Aqsa, to compete in student elections and joined Muslim Brotherhood in early 1950s. Went on to study engineering in the late 1950-60s in West Germany (Darmstadt and Munich), where he worked through the Union of Palestinian Students in Europe, and acted as Fatah’s main Europe link after he merged his own commando group to Fatah in 1963 until 1967. Served as regional head in Jordan briefly in early 1970, then Salah Khalaf’s deputy From 1974, acted as Politicalitical aide to Arafat, then as ambassador to Tehran then to Amman from 1982. Retains good ties to the Gulf States. Became a member of Fatah - Central Committee in May 1980. Criticial of the leadership's stance towards Iraq after Aug. 1990 and at Oslo, but returned to Gaza Strip in Nov. 1995, and became the chief Politicalitical adviser to Arafat as well as PLO - Central Committee member and head of the PNC foreign relations committee. Appointed as Interior Minister on 29 Oct. 2002, favouring continued resistance to occupation forces and settlers, whilst opposing attacks on civilians in Israel, Mahmud Abbas attempted to drop him from the PA cabinet, but despite Arafat's resistance, he was replaced in Apr. 2003 and is slated to act as Arafat's national security adviser.