Islamic Jihad still unsure on supporting Hamas in Palestinian elections
Palestinian Islamic Jihad is considering supporting lists backed or formed by Hamas in the upcoming legislative elections.
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Internal consultations continue to be held within the Palestinian Islamic Jihad on the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) elections scheduled for May, despite the group's announced boycott of the polls.
Islamic Jihad based its decision not to participate in the legislative elections over a failure to reach an agreement on a joint Palestinian political program at the Cairo meeting of the Palestinian factions on Feb. 7. The movement also refuses to be part of any institution — namely the PLC and the presidency — that are products of the Oslo Accords, which the movement opposes.
Still, the Islamic Jihad is encouraging its supporters to vote for particular electoral lists in the contest.
Mohammad al-Hindi, the head of Islamic Jihad’s political bureau, told Al-Monitor that the movement’s political leadership is still assessing whether voting in the elections is permissible.
