Hamas reiterates its keenness on holding elections on due dates

Head of Hamas Political Bureau Ismail Haniyeh held on Tuesday and Wednesday a series of meetings in which he addressed a number of political and national issues as arrangements are underway to hold the general elections, starting with the National Council elections, followed by the legislative council elections and finally the presidential elections.

The meetings had the following outcomes:

1. Hamas leadership hails the Palestinian people in exile, the Palestinian territories occupied in 1948, the West Bank, Gaza Strip and occupied Jerusalem (Al-Quds) for their steadfastness and resilience in the face of the Israeli occupation and its aggressive plans.

The leadership also salutes the Palestinian detainees held in Israeli prisons and renews its pledge to release them.

Hamas prays to Allah to shower the souls of Palestinian martyrs with mercy over their love for Palestine and sacrificing their lives, wishing the wounded a speedy and full recovery.    

2. Hamas leadership reaffirmed its commitment to achieving national partnership and unity, ending division and rebuilding the Palestinian political system in order to face off the major challenges facing the Palestinian cause.

3. Hamas leadership praised Egyptian efforts in brokering the latest national dialogue held in Cairo, which are a continuation of Egypt’s historical endeavours to serve the Palestinian cause. It also hailed the Turkish, Qatari, and Russian roles to remove hurdles in the path of elections.

The Movement stresses that the outcomes of the Cairo talks were reached to be effectively implemented; this requires the implementation of every single article of the final statement of the Cairo dialogue be monitored without exception.

The leadership, in addition, reiterated its readiness and keenness on conducting the talks slated in March properly to lay the foundations of electing and forming a new National Council.

4. Hamas leadership reaffirmed that it is going ahead with the Palestinian elections, while reiterating its keenness on holding the votes on due dates. Meanwhile, it warned against not abiding by theses dates or hesitating to conduct the elections as it would result in grave repercussions and consequences.  

5. Hamas leadership addressed the attempts by the Israeli occupation to blatantly meddle in the election process, either by launching arrest campaigns against Hamas officials and figures in the West Bank or exerting pressure on and threatening them not to run for the elections. As we vehemently condemn these measures, we will defy the Israeli occupation and its arbitrary measures.

We also call on the Palestinian Authority and all Palestinian factions to exert efforts on domestic, regional and international scales to put an end to this appalling interference.

The leadership, moreover, confirmed that holding elections in occupied Jerusalem is a form of resistance against judaisation of the holy city. We call on Palestinian citizens of Jerusalem to run for and vote in the forthcoming elections.

6. Hamas leadership discussed how some Palestinian individuals and sides responded to the movement’s political stances. We affirm that our political positions and national constants are known, clear and expressed very well in our official documents.

Hamas stresses that it is committed to the Palestinian constants for which the Palestinian people have fought throughout their just struggle and for which they have made great sacrifices, reaffirming its commitment to its option of resistance until return and liberation.

7. Hamas leadership expressed its appreciation to the Palestinian people and its supporters everywhere, urging them to get involved in the political process and take part in the election process, especially in the West Bank, as it represents an act of defiance against Israeli plots and policies and comes in support of the resistance option in Palestine. It also calls on them to work on ensuring the success of the election process with its three stages so that Hamas and its resistance option can regain the trust of its Palestinian people.