Member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Ahmed Majdalani revealed that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will chair a meeting of the Palestinian political factions in the coming days to discuss the final options on holding legislative elections.
“There will be an expanded meeting of the leadership to assess the situation,” said Majdalani.
“As part of that assessment, we will make a decision regarding the elections,” he added.
Majdalani told the Voice of Palestine Radio that the Palestinian factions are constantly holding talks over the matter, especially regarding holding elections in Jerusalem.
“No Palestinian would accept the bartering of Jerusalem for the election. Jerusalem is a national cause,” he noted.
For his part, Abbas spokesperson Nabil Abu Rudeineh affirmed on Wednesday that the elections will take place as scheduled.
"Nothing will change nor will there be a disruption that goes against the Palestinian interest, since these elections are a Palestinian demand and all disruptions from here or there are not worth anything."
He affirmed that all parties were exerting efforts in this regard, including the European Union.
According to Abu Rudeineh, the Palestinian leadership has not heard from the US on pressuring Israel to allow holding the elections in Jerusalem.
The Palestinians are scheduled to head to their first national vote in 15 years on May 22. However, Israel refuses to respond to the requests of holding elections in Jerusalem and recently banned electoral events in the city.
