Fatah, Hamas say deal reached on Palestinian elections

Rival Palestinian factions have agreed to hold the first general elections in nearly 15 years.

1 min read

24 September, 2020

Hamas won a landslide in the last elections in 2006 [Getty]

Gaza rulers Hamas and their rivals in the occupied West Bank, Fatah, have agreed to hold Palestinian elections after nearly 15 years, officials from both sides told AFP on Thursday.

Parliamentary and presidential polls will be scheduled within six months under a deal reached between Fatah's leader, Mahmoud Abbas, and Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh.

The last Palestinian parliamentary elections were held in 2006 when Hamas won an unexpected landslide.

Representatives of the rival Palestinian factions met in Turkey on Tuesday for talks on inter-Palestinian reconciliation and implementing the outcomes of earlier meetings, which took place in Ramallah and Beirut earlier this month.

Prior to the Tuesday meeting, a Palestinian source confirmed to The New Arab’s Arabic language service that dates for a general election in the West Bank and Gaza would be discussed.

"If the meeting is successful, President Mahmoud Abbas will issue a presidential decree within the following days announcing the date for a general election," the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said at the time.

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