Palestinian Basic Law
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The Palestinian Basic Law

A collection of various propsals and amendments to the Basic Law of Palestine.

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Considers elections in West Bank alone


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If Hamas prevents the ballot from taking place in Gaza, President Mahmoud Abbas might hold presidential and parliamentary elections in the West Bank alone. Abbas has stated his intentions to hold ...   More...

Israeli defense paper recommends blocking PA elections


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An Israeli defense establishment paper to be presented to the cabinet next month warns that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas may «disappear» from the political arena after his presidential term expires ...   More...

Will not budge over presidential term


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Hamas leader and former Palestinian Foreign Minister Mahmoud Zahhar reiterates that Hamas will not recognize an extension of President Mahmoud Abbas tenure after his current term ends on 9 January 2009. Read: Maan News, ...   More...

Hamas calls for election decree


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Hamas has called on President Mahmoud Abbas to issue a decree to the Central Elections Committee to prepare for presidential elections. Hamas argues that Abbas' term expires on 9 January ...   More...

-Hamas’ gamble endangers PLO


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If Hamas is waiting for 9 January to ambush its rival, this will be a disaster," states I’smat Abed Al-Khaleq in an op-ed in Maan News. Al-Khaleq argues that this would ...   More...

Unity talks launched in Cairo


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A Hamas delegation has arrived in Egypt to participate in talks to restore Palestinian unity and resolve the dispute over the term of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. According to Palestinian ...   More...

Hamas: Extension of term “unconstitutional”


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Hamas-affiliated legal officials reassert that it is “unconstitutional” for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to extend his term for “even one more day” beyond 8 January 2009. The head of the legal committee ...   More...

Poll: Majority favors dissolving the PLC


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In a poll conducted by the An Najah National University Center for Opinion Polls and Survey Studies, 61,1 % of the respondents supported dissolving the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC). 29,6 % ...   More...

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Facts about the Basic Law

The Palestinian Basic Law is to function as a temporary constitution for the Palestinian Authority until the establishment of an independent state and a permanent constitution for Palestine can be achieved.

The Basic Law was passed by the Palestinian Legislative Council in 1997 and ratified by President Yasser Arafat in 2002. It has subsequently been amended twice; in 2003 the political system was changed to introduce a prime minister. In 2005 it was amended to conform to the new Election Law. The 2003 reform was comprehensive and affected the whole nature of the Palestinian political system, whereas the 2005 amendment was only minor and affected only a few paragraphs.

A parallel effort has been made to draft a permanent Palestinian constitution for an independent state, but this was shelved in favor of amending the existing Basic Law.


About this site

This website presents a collection of various drafts and amendments related to the Basic Law and other constitutional texts that have been compiled from various other sources.

You can also expect to find links to news items and reports that are of relevance to Palestinian constitutional law, the electoral framework, political reform and the PA branches of government.

The website was created by the Norwegian journalists Erik Bolstad and Tonje M. Viken in February 2008. The site is a private initiative and has no affiliation to any organizations or authorities.

All external links are purely for information purposes and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editors of this site.

Information and contact details.