BEIJING -- Palestine’s new Prime Minister says he hopes his new government will facilitate Hamas and Fatah forming a "joint national government", with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at its head.

Rami Hamdallah said on Tuesday that hopefully the government would be announced on Thursday. Hamdallah, a political independent and linguistics professor, was appointed as the new prime minister of Palestine on Sunday. He replaces former Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, who resigned in April but remained in his post while a successor was found.

Hamdallah is a member of the Fatah Party led by Abbas and has no previous political or government experience. The new prime minister is tasked with forming a new government of technocrats.