Al-Rayyis was born in
Gaza City,
British Mandate Palestine in 1937. Afterward, al-Rayyis joined the
Palestine Liberation Organization's armed wing and became a leader of the group in
Beirut,
Lebanon. He returned to Gaza in 1996 and was appointed Deputy Speaker of the
Palestinian Legislative Council representing Gaza City under the leadership of Palestinian President
Yasser Arafat and as an adviser of the Palestinian Supreme Court. In addition to politics, he was a well-known poet. Most of his work revolved around the Palestinian political struggle and
Palestinian culture. He wrote several songs about Palestinian cities and authored the book
Palestine in the Critical Period. After being hospitalized for deteriorating health, al-Rayyis died in Gaza on April 13, 2010. Following his death, dignitaries from every Palestinian faction (including both
Fatah and
Hamas—which has
de facto control over the
Gaza Strip) and some parliamentary blocs extended condolences to al-Rayyis's family. ==References==