RAMALLAH, Thursday, December 19, 2019 (WAFA) – Statements by President Mahmoud Abbas at the opening of a meeting for Fatah Revolutionary Council last night in Ramallah in which he re-affirmed that there will be no general elections in Palestine without occupied East Jerusalem being part of it were highlighted on the front page of the three Palestinian Arabic dailies today.
Abbas said: “We will not accept anything short of allowing the residents of Jerusalem to vote in the heart of Jerusalem,” as came in the main front page headline of al-Hayat al-Jadida, which also highlighted the statements: “We will never allow or succumb to pressure from here of there; we said from day one, no to the deal of the century and we know the price of this no; we should protect the Ibrahimi Mosque (in Hebron) just as Al-Aqsa Mosque (in Jerusalem) and we should not allow anyone of desecrate them.”
The main front page story in al-Ayyam daily also highlighted the President’s remarks, and added that the European Union said it is ready to be in contact with all parties regarding holding elections in the holy city.
While al-Quds made these remarks lower on its front page, it nevertheless highlighted as its main top front page story Israeli army raids of Hebron in the south of the West Bank and closing Shuhada Street in the city, while also banning farmers in the Jordan Valley from working on their land.
Al-Quds also said that the Qatari envoy to Gaza, Mohammad Al Amadi, brought equipment to the civil defense and signed an agreement to build a specialized kidney center in Gaza and said that he hopes his country would extend its grant to the besieged coastal enclave.
It also said that Prince Charles of the British royal family is going to visit Palestine next month.
It quoted the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) saying that its deficit dropped to $90 million from a previous $167 million.
Al-Hayat al-Jadida said the United Nations voted overwhelmingly in favor of a resolution on self-determination for the Palestinian people.
It said the Israeli rights organization, B’Tselem, said in a new report that the Israeli army continues to target Palestinian children even though they do not pose any threat.
Al-Ayyam said Israel alleged to have uncovered a resistance group for the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.
It quoted the UN special coordinator for the Middle East, Nickolay Mladenov saying that Israel did not abide by UN Security Council resolution that called for a halt to settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territories.
The three papers also highlighted the US Congress decision to impeach President Donald Trump.
M.K.
