Palestinian Elections | The American Task Force on Palestine

Hamas PM transfers powers to deputy, as he vies for top political role
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Times of Israel
by Elhanan Miller - October 16, 2012 - 12:00am

Hamas’s Gaza Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh reportedly transferred his authorities to his deputy Ziad Zaza on Tuesday, in a move analysts consider the start of his campaign to replace Khaled Mashaal as head of Hamas’s political bureau.

Salafis say Hamas security preventing new political party
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
October 15, 2012 - 12:00am

GAZA CITY (Ma’an) -- The founders of a new Salafi political party said Monday that their official launch is being obstructed by Hamas security forces, not legal regulations as the government in Gaza has claimed. Last week, Salafis announced the Al-Nur party, or 'party of the light', would start officially operating in the coming days. It said it would work on similar lines to an Egyptian party of the same name, which follows an ultra-conservative Islamic ideology.

Abbas says Olmert was "two months" from peace deal
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
October 14, 2012 - 12:00am

RAMALLAH, West Bank, Oct 14 (Reuters) - In comments that may stir Israel's election campaign, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Sunday that he and Ehud Olmert were "two months" away from a peace deal before Olmert had to resign as Israeli prime minister.

Palestinian voters skeptical about value of elections
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Los Angeles Times
by Edmund Sanders - October 10, 2012 - 12:00am

HEBRON, West Bank — Stumping for votes in the first Palestinian election since 2006, Hebron City Council aspirant Maysoun Qawasmi strides into a plastics factory to promote the West Bank's first all-female political party. The 43-year-old candidate begins wooing executives, listening to workers' concerns and promising reform. She predicts that her list of candidates will shake up the conservative Islamist-leaning city, where women rarely take center stage.

Hamas in transition
In Print by Hussein Ibish - NOW Lebanon (Opinion) - October 9, 2012 - 12:00am

The recent exchange of attacks between Israel and militants in the Gaza Strip is unlikely to lead to a broader conflict, but it helps illuminate some of the dramatic changes happening within Hamas. It is yet another indication of the increasing willingness of Hamas factions in Gaza to resume not only countenancing but participating in rocket attacks against Israel. This, in turn, reflects the increasing influence and independence of more militant elements within the organization and their strategy for trying to wrest control of Hamas away from externally-based leaders.

Hamas election boycott leaves West Bank Palestinians with only one choice
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Ben Lynfield - October 6, 2012 - 12:00am

Municipal elections in the West Bank are still three weeks away, but the self-styled patriarch of Nablus politics, Ghassan Shakaa, speaks as if he is already in the mayor's office. He describes one of his key plans – an after-school program for teens who, he laments, currently languish in coffee shops – as if it's a sure thing.

Prime Minister in Gaza Likely To Become Hamas Leader
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Hayat
by Fathi Sabbah - October 2, 2012 - 12:00am

Palestinian sources told Al-Hayat that "[the Prime Minister in Gaza] Ismail Haniyeh is likely to be elected as chairman of the executive committee of the Hamas movement in the next few days or weeks, thus succeeding the current head of the movement’s political bureau, Khaled Meshaal.” The sources said that the name of the new chairman of the executive committee will likely remain a secret.

Poll: 72 percent plan to vote in October's local elections
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
September 29, 2012 - 12:00am

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- A new poll shows 72 percent of Palestinians plan to vote in elections taking place in three weeks, but supporters of Hamas are much less likely to participate in the vote, which is being boycotted by the party. In a poll published on Saturday by the Arab World for Research & Development, 85 percent said they support holding local elections, which will take place on Oct. 20 in the West Bank only.

Abbas adopts 'Dershowitz Formula' for resuming talks with Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Chemi Shalev - September 25, 2012 - 12:00am

Harvard jurist and well-known Israel advocate Professor Alan Dershowitz has secured Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ agreement to a settlement freeze formula that he hopes will break the diplomatic stalemate and lead to a resumption of peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

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