West Bankupdated 1h ago2 min read
Israel Elections This Month Shape Future for 5.5 Million Palestinians Without a Vote
This article is an automated aggregation of coverage from news outlets. Our editorials offer in-depth analysis curated by the NewsCord team.
Over 5.5 million Palestinians have no vote in Israel’s elections. Arab Palestinian voters could hold potential leverage in forming or blocking coalitions.
Elections and Palestinian leverage
Al Jazeera said Israel’s elections this month will shape the future of over 5.5 million Palestinians who have no say in the election, and Al Jazeera’s Nida Ibrahim said it is unlikely to change the situation for Palestinians living under occupation.
Yousef Jabareen said the stakes in the coming election are “existential,” and Jabareen said, “We have to use our political power in order to basically block the deterioration of the situation.”
The Gulf News described Mansour Abbas as having done nearly everything Israel asks of its Palestinian citizens, and the report said Abbas rarely speaks about the war in Gaza or Israel’s occupation of the West Bank.
The Gulf News said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his chief rivals have said they won’t form a coalition with Abbas or any other Arab-led party after the Oct. 27 election, even if that means months of gridlock and another round of voting.
Arab parties, policing, and crime
Arab activists blame soaring crime rates on police negligence, while the police say the problem is rooted in the refusal of community leaders to work with them.
The homicide rate among Palestinian citizens is more than 22 times higher than among Jewish Israelis, while arrest and indictment rates are far lower.
Hassan Jabareen said, “They’re not writing ‘Kill the Jews.’ Some of them are writing, ‘We pray for Gaza,’” and the Gulf News quoted Jabareen as general director of Adalah.
At least 200 Palestinian citizens indicted for speech-related offenses have been classified as security prisoners, according to Adalah, with the report adding that authorities have aggressively curtailed freedom of expression.
Palestinian elections and accountability
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s decision to postpone the long-delayed Palestinian Legislative Council elections has faced a legal challenge, with Samer Sinijlawi filing an appeal in court on Thursday seeking to overturn the decision. Samer Sinijlawi told The Jerusalem Post, “Our court challenge is about defending the right of Palestinians to choose their representatives and hold their leaders accountable.”
Abbas justified the postponement by citing alleged “obstacles posed by Israeli measures” and the need to establish suitable political, security, and on-the-ground conditions for “free, fair, and inclusive elections.” Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar denied the allegations, describing them as “yet another ridiculous lie designed to evade responsibility and accountability.”