Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah party has been holding its first congress in seven years. The congress was delayed for two years and the number of delegates cut by half amid opposition to Abbas's leadership. Some 1,300 delegates gathered to elect new faces to the 21-member central committee, Fatah's top decision-making body, and a new 80-person revolutionary council, a quasi-parliament within the party.
The six-day-congress discussed Fatah's longer-term policy, including how best to confront Israel. Among the delegates are around 60 representatives from 24 countries, including Jordan, Syria and Lebanon.