Reply #25: Abbas has no more authority to call for an election than Bush does to cancel the '06

[IndianaGreen]

election. If it weren't for the Israeli propaganda and pernicious influence on American politics, and if this were taking place anywhere else but in occupied Palestine, American politicians would be accusing Abbas of an undemocratic power grab and voter disenfranchisement.

BTW, Hamas is going to boycott these phoney elections that Abbas and his Washington masters want.

Poll call a 'risky political move'

BY Matthew Price
BBC News, Ramallah

This is the first time that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has publicly called for fresh parliamentary and presidential elections.

As president, however, Mr Abbas does not have authority to order the new elections and he has referred the matter to the Palestinian election commission to see whether or not they can be held.

That will become clearer in the coming days and weeks.

But Mr Abbas' call for elections is a dangerous political move.

It comes at a time when inter-factional violence between his own Fatah faction and Hamas has left several Palestinians dead in Gaza and the West Bank.

A senior Hamas leader rejected Mr Abbas's call for early elections, saying that would be tantamount to a coup.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6186033.stm