Abbas Sets First Palestinian Parliamentary Vote in 20 Years for November
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jul 9
Abbas Sets First Palestinian Parliamentary Vote in 20 Years for November
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jul 9
Summary
November elections would be the first Palestinian parliamentary vote in more than two decades after Mahmoud Abbas issued a decree setting the date on Thursday.
The move appears aimed at persuading the U.S. and European and Arab governments that the Palestinian Authority can reform itself and merit a role in postwar Gaza.
2021 offers a key reason for skepticism: Abbas called elections then canceled them when his grip on power looked vulnerable, and the new decree omits any presidential vote.
Abbas, 90, faces that doubt as the West Bank grows more volatile, with violence rising since the Gaza war and settler outposts expanding.