Former Gaza strongman Mohammed Dahlan quit as Palestinian presidential security advisor on Thursday six weeks after Hamas defeated his Preventive Security forces in the Gaza Strip.

He submitted his resignation to President Mahmud Abbas upon the recommendation of a commission to look into the failings of the Fateh-dominated security services, overcome by Hamas after a week of bloody clashes.

Dahlan’s resignation is not only a personal debacle but is also a defeat for Abbas, who was his protector, and for General Keith Dayton, the US officer dispatched to improve the efficiency of Fateh's fighting men. Sources close to Dayton told The Deccan Herald recently, “Dahlan’s defeat was Dayton’s defeat.” Dahlan’s departure is certain to be welcomed by Palestinians who want to see Fateh and the Palestinian Authority initiate major reforms.

Fateh legislator and former head of Preventive Security in Gaza, Dahlan was appointed Abbas’ national security adviser in March, undermining the authority of Hani Kawasmeh, the interior minister in the national unity government, who quit after serving in the post for only a few weeks.

Dahlan is hated by Hamas because during the nineties, when he was security boss in Gaza, his forces arrested and tortured key figures in the movement, including Dr. Mahmud Zahar, a leading figure who served as foreign minister in the Hamas government formed after the party won a majority of seats in parliament in the 2006 election. Dahlan is seen as a close ally of the US and Israel and is accused by many of being corrupt.

Born to a poor family living in a refugee camp in Khan Younis at the centre of the Gaza Strip, he is said to have amassed a fortune.  His compound near the beach in Gaza city covers an entire municipal block. His home was overrun by clansmen who had joined forces with Preventive Security and looted after the defeat of this force by Hamas.

As a youth he joined Yasser Arafat’s Fateh movement and became active during the first intifada (1987-93).  He was jailed several times by Israel between 1981 and 1986 and was expelled by Israel in 1988 when he moved to Arafat's headquarters in Tunis.  He returned to the Palestinian territories in 1994 after the Oslo accords were signed.