RAMALLAH, President Mahmoud Abbas is going to head a meeting for the Palestinian leadership on Thursday night to discuss the legislative elections and other developments, today said Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh.
The elections have been planned for May 22, and the Palestinian leadership insists on holding them also in occupied East Jerusalem, as in the two previous legislative elections held in 1996 and 2006, and the 2005 presidential elections. But so far, Israel has not given approval for holding them inside the occupied city, which could be a strong factor for delaying them.
Speaking at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting in Ramallah, Shtayyeh also condemned the Israeli police treatment of Palestinians in East Jerusalem over the last two weeks, which included attacking and arresting many and not allowing people in the city to celebrate the holy month of Ramadan at the steps of Damascus Gate court in the old city.
“What the (Israeli) occupation authorities are doing against the people in Jerusalem, the siege of the Gaza Strip, the continuing settler attacks, and legalizing settlements could be considered war crimes and worse than any racist regime in history,” he said, urging the international community to act quickly to put a stop to these Israeli measures in the holy city.
Source: Palestinian News & Info Agency