TEL AVIV, December 21, 2005 (WAFA)-Israeli officials said Wednesday that Israel will not allow Jerusalem Palestinians to vote in legislative elections because it objects to the participation of Hamas in the race.

The Israeli daily Haaretz said that Senior Israeli officials told Veronique de Keyser, who heads a delegation of European election observers, that Israel will bar Palestinians in Jerusalem from voting in Jerusalem for the January 25 Palestinian legislative elections because of the participation of Hamas.

According to the Oslo Accords, Palestinian citizens of East Jerusalem are allowed to vote in legislative elections via their local post offices. This arrangement was used both in the last legislative election in 1996, and in the Presidential elections earlier this year.

M.H. (12:30 P )(10:30 GMT)