Palestinian deputy PM resigns

Deputy Prime Minister of the Palestinian unity government Mohamed Mustafa, who is also the minister of national economy, resigned on Tuesday, according to Palestinian officials.

Adnan Jolani, a media advisor to Mustafa, told Xinhua news agency that the deputy prime minister submitted his resignation at the weekly meeting of the unity government's cabinet held in Ramallah on Tuesday.

"Mustafa will release soon a clarification on the reasons behind his resignation from the unity government," said Jolani.

Meanwhile, Ihab Bseiso, spokesman of the unity government, also told Xinhua that Mustafa's resignation was presented for personal reasons.

"Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah asked his deputy Mustafa to wait until the return of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas from his tour, because Abbas is the one who accepts or rejects resignations," said Bseiso.

Mustafa is also a prominent Palestinian economist and currently the chairman of the Palestinian Investment Fund.