Palestinians rally behind Abbas re-election, urge halt to settlements

• Source: Global Times
• [03:17 November 10 2009]
• Comments

Hundreds of Palestinians gathered Monday in the West Bank town of Ramallah to express support for President Mahmud Abbas, days after he said he would not seek re-election in January.

The beleaguered president appears to be hitting the campaign trail despite announcing Thursday that he would not seek another term in office because of the US government's failure to compel Israel to freeze Jewish settlements.

Government workers and students at public schools were told to attend the midday rally, at which demonstrators were expected to call on Abbas to remain in office and not resume peace talks without a complete halt to settlements.

The demonstration came a day after Abbas was hailed by Palestinian crowds during a rare visit to the West Bank towns of Hebron and Bethlehem, when he slammed Israel's refusal to halt settlement growth.

"Israel says it rejects preconditions for restarting negotiations, but in fact the Israelis reject peace," Abbas said in Bethlehem. "They don't want a halt to settlements and they don't want a vision of two states because they do not want peace."

He added, however, that the Palestinians "must keep believing in peace and security and the development of our homeland and our national unity."

The administration of US President Barack Obama initially echoed Abbas' calls, but in recent weeks Washington has urged both sides to return to the negotiating table with or without a complete settlements freeze.

AFP