Government and Politics

Government and Politics of West Bank

Government structure, leadership, capital, military, and national symbols of West Bank.

Government Structure

Constitutional foundations, branches, parties, and leadership.

Executive Branch: The executive branch of the West Bank operates under the framework established by the Oslo Accords of the 1990s, which created the Palestinian Authority (PA) as the governing body for Palestinian-administered territories. The political structure is complex, reflecting the unresolved status of the West Bank as a territory under Israeli military occupation while simultaneously being subject to Palestinian self-governance in designated areas. The President of the Palestinian Authority serves as the head of state and exercises significant executive authority. Mahmoud Abbas, also known by his nom de guerre Abu Mazen, has held the presidency since January 2005, following the death of Yasser Arafat. Abbas leads Fatah, the dominant secular nationalist movement within Palestinian politics. His presidential term officially expired in 2009, but elections have been repeatedly delayed due to political divisions, legal disputes, and security concerns, leaving his continued tenure a subject of ongoing controversy. The Prime Minister serves as head of government and is responsible for managing day-to-day administrative functions. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President and oversees the Council of Ministers, which acts as the cabinet and coordinates policy across various governmental portfolios including finance, education, health, and infrastructure. Executive authority in the West Bank is further complicated by the political split between Fatah, which controls the PA in the West Bank, and Hamas, which seized control of the Gaza Strip in 2007. This division has prevented unified Palestinian governance and stalled efforts toward reconciliation. Various unity agreement attempts between the two factions have largely failed to produce a lasting, functioning joint administration. The Palestinian Authority's executive power is also constrained in practice by the presence of Israeli military and civil administration, particularly in Area C, which comprises approximately 60 percent of the West Bank and remains under full Israeli control. This limits the PA's effective territorial jurisdiction primarily to Areas A and B, where it exercises varying degrees of civil and security authority.
Independence: Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17%

Back to West Bank