The Yasser Arafat Foundation, represented by its Boards of Trustees and Directors, as well as all its staff, mourns the passing of its esteemed Board Member, Dr. Zakaria Al-Agha. A former member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Central Committee of the Fatah Movement, Dr. Al-Agha passed away on Monday, May 12, 2025, in Cairo, Egypt.

The Foundation extends its heartfelt condolences and deepest sympathies to his honorable family, friends, loved ones, and the Palestinian people. We ask the Almighty to grant him infinite mercy, to bless him with paradise, and to grant his family patience and solace in this time of grief.

“Indeed, we belong to God, and to Him we shall return.”

About the Late Dr. Zakaria Al-Agha
Dr. Zakaria Al-Agha was born in the city of Khan Younis in 1942. He joined the Fatah Movement in 1967 and steadily rose through its ranks until he became a member of its Central Committee in 1992.

During the First Intifada, he was subjected to Israeli arrest, administrative dismissal from his job, and a travel ban preventing him from leaving the Gaza Strip.

He served as Minister of Housing in the first Palestinian government formed by the Palestinian Authority on home soil.

In 1996, he was elected as a member of the Executive Committee of the PLO, where he led the Department of Arab and International Relations, followed by his leadership of the Department of Refugee Affairs.

In 2002, he became Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Al-Azhar University in Gaza.

Following the events of June 14, 2007, President Mahmoud Abbas appointed him to head the Higher Leadership Committee of the Fatah Movement in the Gaza Strip to oversee all the movement’s activities. He was also  entrusted with leading the National Action Commission, an extension and vital arm of the Palestine Liberation Organization.