1st LD Writethru: Fatah's eighth general conference re-elects Mahmoud Abbas as movement leader

RAMALLAH, May 14 (Xinhua) -- The eighth general conference of the Palestinian National Liberation Movement (Fatah) on Thursday re-elected Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas as the movement's leader, according to Palestinian official news agency WAFA.

Citing a statement carried by WAFA, the conference said that members unanimously voted to elect Abbas as president and commander-in-chief of the movement, reaffirming their confidence in his leadership during what it described as a "sensitive stage" in Palestinian history.

The statement stressed the importance of the role played by Abbas in leading the movement during the current delicate phase.

The three-day conference opened on Thursday simultaneously in the West Bank city of Ramallah, the Gaza Strip, Cairo, and Beirut. It is expected to elect the movement's two highest leadership bodies -- the Central Committee and the Revolutionary Council.

Founded in 1959 under the leadership of the late leader Yasser Arafat, Fatah is the largest faction within the Palestine Liberation Organization and has been the dominant force in the Palestinian Authority.

The seventh general conference of Fatah was held in Ramallah in 2016, which saw Abbas re-elected as the movement's leader. Enditem