Palestinian Foreign Minister, Nasser Al Qidwa, said that the Palestinian Authority will cancel the legislative elections if Israel conducts acts to obstruct them in east Jerusalem.
Al Qidwa said in a press release on Friday that the Palestinian leadership, represented by the Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, will stop the elections if Israel obstructs the movement of the residents, and carries violations one day before the elections.
Also, Al Qidwa added that the participation of east Jerusalem residents in the elections is one of the main conditions for the continuation of the process, and held Israel responsible for any illegal act or violation which could sabotage the democratic process.
Al Qidwa also slammed the positions of some Palestinian factions which demanded to hold the elections in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip after finding "creative solutions" for the participation of Jerusalemite Palestinians.
"These statements are very dangerous", he said, "The interest of one faction should not be more important than the Palestinian interests and standards".
He added that the Palestinians in east Jerusalem should be part of the democratic process, exactly as the case was in 1996 elections, "Jerusalem is part of the occupied territories since 1967; it is the capital of the Palestinian State".
"There is no reason to delay the elections", he stated, "The conditions are more difficult than the previous elections, soldiers are blocking the Palestinian areas, obstructing movement, and carrying military operations. This affects the elections but is not a reason to delay them".
Al Qidwa condemned all sorts of chaos in the Palestinian areas, and said that any incident of obstruction to the work of the international observers or the elections will be considered an attack against the Palestinian people, and demanding the P.A security to be determined to counter such incidents effectively.
