Roundup: Palestinians hope for general elections soon amid internal split

Palestinians, especially Gazans, have expressed hope to have general elections soon to help end an internal division between Islamist Hamas movement and Fatah Party.

The Palestinian Bar Association held its elections in the West Bank and Gaza on Monday. The list of Fatah lawyers fully won the six board members of the association in Gaza and seven seats in the West Bank, defeating a coalition list of Hamas and Islamic Jihad.

After Fatah's success in the elections, its supporters in the Gaza Strip said the group will win a majority if the general elections are held soon.

Safi Dahdouh, a winning lawyer, told Xinhua that 97 percent of the Bar Association's general assembly members in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank participated in the vote, adding that this shows the keenness of the lawyers for a democratic change through elections.

Dahdouh stressed that the successful vote "was a powerful motive to reach a real full reconciliation, end the current internal split and go for real democratic presidential and legislative elections in the Palestinian territories."

The last Palestinian parliamentary elections were held in 2006, when Hamas movement defeated its rival Fatah Party.

The last presidential election was held in 2005, in which Mahmoud Abbas was elected as president to succeed late leader Yasser Arafat who died in November 2004. Since then, parliamentary and presidential elections were not held.

In the summer of 2007, following weeks of infighting between Hamas and Fatah, Hamas militants seized control of the Gaza Strip by force.

Since then, all attempts of foreign mediators to end their feuds have failed. The two big rival groups have been trading accusations over who obstructs holding the general parliamentary and presidential elections in the Palestinian territories.

In April of last year, Fatah and Hamas agreed in Gaza to form a unity technocrat government, which was formed and sworn in before President Abbas in June. However, Hamas and the new government began to blame each other about who is hindering the work of the government.

Hamas said the unity government neglected the Gaza Strip and refused to pay the salaries of its 40,000 employees, while the government complained that Hamas seizes security in the coastal enclave and refuse to hand it over.

Sami Abu Zuhri, Hamas spokesman in Gaza, told Xinhua that President Abbas is fully responsible for obstructing the holding of the elections, adding that "Hamas is committed to holding the elections as part of implementing all the reached reconciliation agreements and understandings."

Amind Maqbool, member of the Fatah Party's central Committee, told Xinhua that Hamas movement is the one which is responsible for obstructing the elections to be held, adding that "Hamas obstructs the performance of the unity government and takes control of the Gaza Strip."

Farid Ta'mallah, spokesman of the Palestinian Elections Commission, told Xinhua that his commission is ready to hold the general elections in the Palestinian territories in case President Abbas issues a decree that sets a date for the polls.

"The commission doesn't intervene in the factional controversies or political disputes which are the main reason for not holding the elections. I'm talking about our technical readiness; we have no obstacle to hold it anytime," said Ta'mallah.

According to the commission, there are around two million Palestinian people who have the right to vote in any upcoming elections. But until now, the rival groups have not agreed on a specific date for holding the polls.

Hani al-Masri, a Ramallah-based political analyst, told Xinhua that any elections held without a full Palestinian unity and complete partnership "will be meaningless and will empower the current internal division."

He argued that with the current ongoing accusations and growing feuds, elections will not be held anytime soon. Endit