Arafat may appoint billionaire as premier

In the latest twist to the attempts to get Yasser Arafat to relinquish the Palestinian leadership, one of the richest Palestinians in the world – a businessman who has not lived in the occupied territories for years – is being talked of as a serious candidate for the job of prime minister.

Mr Arafat agreed to appoint a prime minister to take over negotiations with Israel and the day-to-day Palestinian leadership under intense pressure from the US and Europe.

Monib al-Masri, whom Mr Arafat was said to be seriously considering for the job, is believed to be a billionaire. He made his fortune from a variety of business interests, including construction projects and banking. Born in the West Bank city of Nablus, he has lived in the Jordanian capital, Amman, for many years.

Mr Masri's name did not come out of the blue. He was touted as a possible Palestinian prime minister in 1994, when the Palestinian Authority was set up, before Mr Arafat scotched the idea of sharing his power.

More significantly, he appears to enjoy some support from the US and Israel. His name is believed to have been among those put forward by those countries when Mr Arafat came under pressure to appoint a new finance minister last year, a job that eventually went to Salam Fayyad.

Mr Masri is not the political neophyte he was being presented as yesterday. In the 1970s, he served as Jordan's minister of public works. Although he has long lived outside the occupied territories, he retains business interests there.

Senior figures from Mr Arafat's Fatah movement met the Palestinian leader yesterday to demand that he appoint their favoured candidate, Mahmoud Abbas, the deputy head of the PLO, as prime minister.