As Mahmoud Abbas's health begins to fail, a battle to succeed him looms large

“Abu Mazen will live to one hundred and twenty and bury us all,” joked a senior Israeli officer not long ago, referring to the Palestinian president’s longevity.

But recent hospitalisations of Mahmoud Abbas have once again raised the prospect of a succession battle among the Palestinians. While Mr Abbas’ staff have tried to project an upbeat image, with footage of him walking around the hospital in Ramallah in a dressing gown, reading a newspaper, his latest illness is rumoured to be his most serious yet.

Thirteen years since he was elected Palestinian president — no election has been held since — the 82-year-old Mr Abbas is not showing any inclination to name a successor or announce retirement.

Nature may be doing its own, but even if he perseveres, Mr Abbas is seen as a discredited and spent force, incapable of uniting the Palestinians behind him. If he is forced by ill health to resign in the near future, there is no designated successor — certainly not for all the positions Mr Abbas holds, including chairman of the Palestinian Authority, of the Palestine Liberation Organisation and the leadership of Fatah, the main PLO faction.