Palestinian general elections must be held on time: Fatah

Ramallah, Jan 29 The Fatah party headed by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has insisted on holding the upcoming general elections in the state's territories on time.

Osama al-Qawasmeh, Fatah's spokesman in the West Bank, said in a statement issued on Thursday that the party "won't step back on holding the elections under any circumstances", Xinhua news agency

"The upcoming Palestinian elections are crucial and important in the path of the Palestinian national struggle to reach our legitimate goals of freedom and independence," al-Qawasmeh noted.

On January 15, President Abbas issued a decree setting specific dates for holding the legislative and presidential elections, in addition to a vote for the Palestinian National Council.

Under the decree, legislative elections will be held on May 22, presidential elections on July 31, and the Palestinian National Council elections on August 31.

The last legislative elections were held in the Palestinian territories on January 25, 2006.

The result was a victory for the Islamic Hamas movement, which had contested under the list name of Change and Reform. It received 44.45 per cent of the vote and won 74 of the 132 seats.

Meanwhile, the Fatah received 41.43 per cent of the vote and won 45 seats.

While Abbas, who assumed office in January 2005, remained the President, the new government with Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh as Prime Minister was sworn in on March 29, 2006.

( With inputs from IANS )