The risk of factional chaos as Palestinians prepare to elect a new
president is underlined after Mahmoud Abbas, nominated to succeed Yassir
Arafat, escapes injury when militants burst into a Gaza City mourning
tent and exchanged fire with his bodyguards. A Palestinian security man
was killed in the incident which formed a violent backdrop to an
announcement by the interim president Rawhi Fattouh, that elections
would take place on Jan 9. Abbas, a former PM known as Abu Mazen, is
expected to be named the candidate of Fatah, the dominant Palestinian
faction. Abbas, 69, is unpopular with most ordinary Palestinians. The
gunmen shouted "No to Abu Mazen" as they fired shots in the
air. Under Palestinian law, elections should be held within 60 days and
officials urged Israel to pull back its military to allow a free and
direct vote, including in East Jerusalem. "If the Israelis continue
to obstruct voting or keep their army inside our areas, I don't
think we can hold elections", said Saeb Erekat, a Palestinian
negotiator. Israeli PM Sharon, looked set to agree to voting in East
Jerusalem, particularly if Washington applied pressure, having initially
opposed the move, reports said. On Nov 14 UK PM, said achieving peace in
the Middle East was important if the war on terrorism was to be won.
Speaking on NBC's Meet the Press, recorded after his meeting with
Pres. Bush, he said: "As a political challenge, I think it is the
toughest we face because the single biggest blow that we could deal to
the terrorists, along with democracy in Afghanistan, democracy in Iraq,
is to take away this cause on which they prey and they feed, and deliver
a viable and democratic Palestine alongside a secure and democratic
Israel".
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