HASAN, HANI AL- (Abu Hasan, Abu Tariq; 1937–)

Palestinian political figure born in Haifa, Palestine, brother of Khalid al-Hasan. Having become a refugee in Lebanon in 1948, at the time of the first Arab-Israeli conflict, Hani al-Hasan studied in Lebanon and then in Germany, where he obtained a degree in engineering. He was elected president of the General Union of Palestinian Students in Europe in 1958. A member of Fatah since its formation in 1959, he joined the fidaʾiyyun in Jordan and became the movement spokesperson. Between 1969 and 1973, as a refugee in Lebanon, he served in the political section of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), where among other responsibilities he was in charge of relations with China and Romania. In July 1976, in the midst of the Lebanese crisis, he attempted in vain to persuade Yasir Arafat to accept Syrian help. In 1979, after being named to the Fatah's central committee, he became PLO ambassador to Iran, where he remained until 1981. Between 1982 and 1987 he was PLO representative in Jordan and a political advisor to Arafat. During this period he also was a roving ambassador to a number of countries, including Morocco, Egypt, and France. In May 1989 he became the head of a committee responsible for contacts between the PLO leadership and France, a body created after Arafat's Paris visit. After September 1990, in spite of his loyalty to Arafat, he openly expressed his opposition to Arafat's policies and his manner of directing the movement. During the Gulf crisis he was against the PLO siding with Iraq and became one of the leaders of the opposition in Fatah. In July 1991 Arafat relieved him of leadership of the committee on relations with France, and al-Hasan was put in charge of overseeing the activities of Fatah in Jordan. Opposed to the Israel-Palestinian accord of 13 September 1993 because of form but not its basic principle, he declined the post of ambassador to Jordan. Hasan returned to the Gaza Strip in 1995 and became Arafat's chief diplomatic advisor. He was appointed interior minister of the Palestinian Authority in October 2002 but left the cabinet in April 2003. He remains on the central committee of Fatah.

SEE ALSO Arafat, Yasir;Fatah, al-;Gaza Strip;General Union of Palestinian Students;Hasan, Khalid al-;Palestine Liberation Organization;Palestinian Authority.