Abbas Zaki (ar|عباس زكي) is the former representative of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in Lebanon and a member of Fatah's central committee.[1]
As a result of the conflict in the Nahr al-Bared Camp in Lebanon, Zaki proposed setting up a Palestinian security force of 4,000 to 5,000 members in the refugee camps in Lebanon to prevent the formation of extremist groups.[2]
Zaki described Fatah al-Islam as "an ignorant group, hiding themselves behind Islam, and practicing the most ugly crimes against women and children in the camp of Nahr al Barid."[1] In May 2009, Zaki suggested that if unity talks between Hamas and Fatah in Cairo fail, Abbas should form a new government that will lay out a new approach to Hamas.[3]
Ahead of Fatah's sixth conference on August 4, 2009, Zaki stated "I'm sorry to compare, but the Israelis elected Lieberman and appointed him as Foreign Minister, and a similar mistake was made by the Palestinian people in electing Hamas, which is setting up all the obstacles preventing the improvement of the national unity."[4]
Zaki has made a number of controversial statements.[5] In 2023, he expressed support for Hamas's October 7 attack, a statement that was later disavowed by another Fatah official, who clarified that it did not represent the group's official position.[6]