Abbas Confirms Palestinian Vote to Be Postponed

Tom Perry (Reuters)

November 24, 2009

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has said presidential and legislative elections scheduled for January will be postponed, confirming that he has accepted advice not to hold the vote. …

Senior members of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) which Abbas heads, told Reuters this week they expected the body to effectively extend Abbas’s term at a meeting in December. The PLO and the Fatah faction which dominates it have both called on Abbas to stay on as leader. Abbas heads both bodies.

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“We knew at the outset that the task would be difficult. We acknowledged that publicly and privately. We knew this would be a road with many bumps— and there have been many bumps—and that continues to this day. But we are not deterred. We are, to the contrary, determined more than ever to proceed to realize the common objective, which we all share, of a Middle East that is at peace with security and prosperity for the people of Israel, for Palestinians, and for all the people in the region. We will continue our efforts in that regard, undeterred and undaunted by the difficulties, the complexities or the bumps in the road.”—George Mitchell, special envoy for Middle East peace, remarks with Prime Minister Netanyahu, September 29, 2010

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