Majed Faraj

Majed Faraj (; born 28 February 1963) is a Palestinian intelligence officer with the rank of major general

He joined the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) when he was a teenager, but later switched to the Fatah. He was imprisoned by Israeli authorities for the first time before completing high school over his activities with the PFLP, spending a year and a half in jail. He would be arrested 15 more times, spending six years total in Israeli prisons, where he learned Hebrew. He was held in Far'a, ad-Dhahiriya, the Moscovia Detention Centre, Hebron, Nablus, Atlit, and the Negev. He founded the Shabiba youth movement of the Fatah in 1982, and later participated in the First Intifada. In 2000, he was appointed to lead the PPS in Hebron Governorate, and in 2003, served as an advisor to Hakam Balawi, the minister of interior. He became the director of the Palestinian Military Intelligence Service in 2006. He later participated in a Palestine Liberation Organization delegation to the Gaza Strip in April 2014 after the formation of a government led by Rami Hamdallah. Abbas later rejected this statement and again accused Hamas of being the perpetrator.

Under previous Palestinian law (General Intelligence Law No. 17, 2005), which dictated that the GIS director may only serve a four-year term, Faraj's term as intelligence chief ended in 2013.

In March 2025, it was reported that Abbas intended to remove Faraj as GIS director, as part of a purge of Palestinian security officials. He had earlier dismissed the leaders of the Palestinian National Security Forces, the PPS, and the police and civil defense, leaving Faraj as the final security chief to retain his post.

Ties with Israeli and Western intelligence Faraj is also responsible for coordinating with the Israeli Shin Bet, and has been involved in negotiations with Israel. Thus, he has developed close ties with the agency. He met with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the Department of State in Washington, D.C., in 2013, where he received an honorary award by the US government for providing valuable intelligence to US and Israeli intelligence agencies, including information that led to the capture of senior al-Qaeda operative Abu Anas al-Libi by the Delta Force. Faraj became well-liked by American diplomats such as John Kerry and Martin Indyk, and developed a close relationship with Gen. John R. Allen. Later in September, he headed a delegation of security officials that met with the CIA in Washington.

In August 2021, CIA director William J. Burns traveled to the West Bank to meet with Faraj and Abbas. In January 2022, it was reported that he met with Israeli foreign minister Yair Lapid, where they discussed economic issues and security coordination without mentioning diplomatic relations. Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant reportedly considered him among other Palestinian officials to manage Gaza after the Gaza war. In May 2025, Faraj arrived in Washington to meet CIA director John Ratcliffe and several other senior officials, becoming the first senior PA leader to visit the US under the second Trump administration.

Controversies In 2013, Hamas accused him of inciting public opinion against it alongside the Egyptian government, claiming that it received documents signed by Faraj detailing an organized media campaign that intended to spread false information about the group's involvement in Egyptian internal affairs. He enjoys support from the US for the role due to his ties to Israeli intelligence, as well as from moderate Arab nations, who endorse his security expertise and commitment to regional stability. although enjoys little support outside of them due to his ties with Israel and crackdown on militias in the West Bank. His most prominent competitors are Hussein al-Sheikh, Jibril Rajoub, Marwan Barghouti,

In 2006, Faraj unsuccessfully ran for a seat in the Palestinian Legislative Council.

In May 2024, it was reported that Faraj requested that the release of Marwan Barghouti be excluded from any Gaza war ceasefire deals, believing that Barghouti would threaten Abbas's rule.

In May 2026, Faraj was elected to the Central Committee of Fatah.

Personal life In 1985, he married Amal Faraj, a Fatah activist. He has three sons. His father, Ali, was shot and killed by Israeli soldiers in 2002 during a raid in Bethlehem.