The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) will meet on Wednesday to discuss the composition of the incoming Hamas-led government. Palestinian National Authority (PNA) President Mahmoud Abbas, the head of the PLO's executive committee, is then expected to state his position on the new government. Though it has taken a backseat to the PNA for several years, the PLO — an umbrella group representing the majority of Palestinian factions — retains its power as the representative of the people, in the absence of a Palestinian state. And Fatah, which has dominated the PLO since 1969, now appears to be using the body as a means of combating Hamas' political ascendance. After losing control of the PNA as a result of its Jan. 25 election defeat, Fatah knew that it still held three significant cards that could be played to keep Hamas from assuming complete control of the Palestinian leadership. First, Fatah retained the PNA presidency, in the person of Abbas. Second, the PLO remained firmly under Fatah's control because Hamas had refused to join that group. The third, and perhaps most important, consideration was Hamas' refusal to recognize Israel, honor past Israeli-Palestinian agreements and renounce terrorism. Fatah used this third factor to justify its unwillingness to join a Hamas-led unity government, despite intense negotiations between the two sides. Although they have long opposed Fatah's domination of Palestinian politics, smaller factions such as the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine also refused to join, citing Hamas' unwillingness to recognize the PLO as the sole representative of Palestinian people everywhere and to accept its policies. Therefore, Hamas formed a new Cabinet on its own, which is to be installed into office soon. Whereas the mainstream factions represented by the PLO are opposed to Hamas, Hamas has not taken a stance opposing the PLO — but it does want to reshape the structure of the Palestinian political system. Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said Tuesday that the Islamist movement does not dispute "the importance of the PLO" and noted that it wants to join the organization — "but only after it is reconstructed on a new political base." It is this latter goal that has Fatah worried. Yasser Abed Rabbo, a PLO executive member and former senior government minister, said, "Palestinians have voted for Hamas because they want to see the Palestinian Authority reformed, and not for the abolition of its constitution and laws." Elsewhere, Fatah spokesman Ahmed Abdelrahman described Hamas' stance towards the PLO as "a dangerous political coup d'etat." In essence, Fatah is trying to limit Hamas' room to maneuver by pointing out that the PNA — even under the Islamist radical group — remains an extension of the PLO. Or, to state it differently, Fatah is attempting to revive the importance of the PLO in the public's mind — and with that, Fatah's own means of retaining power. Because the PLO is the organization from which all Palestinian governing institutions have sprung, Fatah is now arguing that Hamas cannot selectively accept the authority of bodies like the Palestinian Legislative Council and PNA while ignoring the political framework that gave rise to them. Hamas realizes that the PLO has supremacy over the PNA, and that this could lead to a constitutional crisis if Hamas and Fatah cannot agree on a deal about the future of the PLO. Therefore, Hamas will attempt to run a solo government in the Palestinian territories while also seeking to negotiate with Fatah over the PLO.