The outgoing Palestinian parliament used its final session Monday to give Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas broad new powers, infuriating Hamas just days before the Islamic group was to take control of a suddenly weakened legislature. The new legislation was designed to preserve Abbas' control over the Palestinian Authority, though it was unlikely to assuage international concerns about dealing with a Hamas-led government. Hamas officials said they would immediately try to overturn the laws after the new parliament is sworn in Saturday. "I think this session was illegal. It is a kind of bloodless coup," said Abdel Aziz Duaik, an incoming Hamas legislator. The new law "puts complete authority in the hands of the president," he added.
Abbas' Fateh Party, which dominated Palestinian politics for four decades, was roundly defeated by Hamas in January 25 parliamentary elections. Abbas was elected last year to a four-year term. In their final session with a parliamentary majority, Fateh lawmakers gave Abbas the authority to appoint a new, nine-judge constitutional court, which would serve as the final arbiter in disputes between him and a Hamas parliament and Cabinet. The court could also veto legislation deemed to violate the Palestinians' Basic Law, which acts as a quasi-constitution. Legal expert Issam Abdeen said the legislation would essentially give Abbas power over what laws the new parliament passed "since he is the one who appoints the judges of the constitutional court." "He can use (these powers) to nullify laws that are unacceptable to him. If Hamas now approves Islamic laws, he could say it is against the constitution," Abdeen said.