Abbas goes into hospital for ‘minor’ operation

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas went to the hospital on Tuesday to undergo “minor surgery” on his ear, official media reported.

Abbas arrived at a hospital near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank for the operation and was due to be released “in a few hours,” the official news agency Wafa said.

Abbas, a heavy smoker, has a long history of health issues, ranging from heart troubles to a bout with prostate cancer a decade ago. Last summer, he dispelled rumors he had suffered a stroke.

Abbas, 83, insists he is fine, but potential successors are quietly jockeying for position.

In recent months he has cut off all ties with US President Donald Trump’s administration after the announcement the US would recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and move its embassy there.

Abbas won presidential elections in 2005 but his Fatah party lost parliamentary polls to Islamists Hamas the following year.

It set off tensions between them that escalated in 2007 into a near civil war as Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip.

Elections have not been held since and Abbas has remained in power in the West Bank despite his term expiring in 2009.