Hamas legislator Abdel Aziz Duaik, a geography professor from the West Bank, was elected speaker of the new Palestinian parliament Saturday, a position that puts him next in line should Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas die or be incapacitated while in office.
Duaik, 57, considered a relative moderate in the Islamic militant group, was elected to the post shortly after the new Hamas-dominated parliament was sworn in. The parliament speaker assumes leadership for 60 days if the head of the Palestinian Authority can no longer fulfill his responsibilities.
The Cairo-born Duaik was elected with 70 votes in the 132-member legislature. The outgoing speaker, Rauhi Fattouh of Fatah, handed Duaik the gavel to cheers and applause from Hamas lawmakers.
Hamas' surprise victory in a Jan. 25 election gave the Islamic movement 74 parliamentary seats, ousting Abbas' Fatah party, which has dominated Palestinian politics for decades.
Hamas is officially sworn to Israel's destruction, while Abbas wants the group to recognize past Israeli-Palestinian agreements and hold peace negotiations with the Jewish state, pointing a to a showdown between the two.
A father of seven, Duaik joined Hamas in 1987, almost immediately after the Islamic movement was founded. Arrested four times by Israel, he spent two years in prison and was deported to Lebanon in 1992. While in Lebanon, Duaik served as a spokesman for the hundreds of Islamic militants deported along with him.
A fluent English speaker, Duaik has a doctoral degree from the University of Pennsylvania. He is a professor at An Najah University in the West Bank city of Nablus, where he established a geography department.
In his first speech, the new speaker said parliament's first mission would be to quickly review the legality of ‘all decisions and decrees’ made during the transition period after the parliament election.
Duaik did not elaborate. But last week, the outgoing parliament controlled by Fatah approved the creation of a constitutional court that would give Abbas more power over a Hamas-led government.
Duaik also promised Hamas would fight for Palestinian rights and to end the Israeli occupation. But in comments to reporters before entering the parliament session, Duaik said the challenge for the new government would be to unite the Palestinian people and form a government with Fatah.
‘I think Israel should realize the fact that this is the choice of our people and our people are people who would like to live free under the skies like any other nation in the world,’ Duaik told reporters.
The parliament also elected two deputy speakers and a secretary general. Hamas legislator Ahmed Bahar of Gaza was chosen first deputy and independent Hassan Khreisheh, backed by Hamas, was elected second deputy. Hamas legislator Mahmoud Ramahi from Ramallah will serve as the secretary general of the parliament .