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Hamas: Elections in parts of occupied territories will not legitimise Abbas

April 18, 2014 at 9:51 am

Hamas yesterday denounced Fatah and Palestinian Authority (PA) leader Mahmoud Abbas’ decision to hold elections in parts of the occupied Palestinian territories.


Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoom said if elections were held only in the occupied West Bank, “it would not give Abbas legitimacy or increase his strength in the face of the Israeli occupation or the US pressure.”

Barhoom wrote on his Facebook page: “If Abbas wanted to get new legitimacy and increase his strength, he should follow the footsteps of the late Yasser Arafat and other resistance leaders. He should end the security cooperation with the occupation. This is the only way to unify the Palestinians.”

He noted that would be a very important “achievement” and would unify the Palestinians. “Then, there will be no need for more delegations or committees to come and go in order to achieve the reconciliation,” he said.

The London based newspaper Al-Quds Al-Arabi has recently reported that the PA leadership said Abbas chose a team from Fatah’s Executive Committee to propose a plan to hold elections in “places where it is applicable” if they did not reach an agreement with Hamas.

A delegation from Fatah is expected to arrive in Gaza to in the coming week to discuss reconciliation efforts.

The committee was formed two weeks ago. It included the membership of head of Fatah parliamentarian bloc Azzam Al-Ahmad, heads of other Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) parties and the Palestinian businessman, close to Abbas and Israel, Munib Al-Masri.