Hamas rejects delay of Palestinian elections as 'coup'
The Hindu
Hamas, which had been expected to perform well in the May 22 elections, had earlier said that voting in east Jerusalem should take place without Israel’s permission
The Islamic militant group Hamas has rejected Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ decision to cancel the first elections in 15 years, calling it a “coup” with no popular support. In his announcement early Friday, Mr. Abbas cited a dispute with Israel over voting in east Jerusalem, but delaying the elections will likely spare his divided Fatah party another embarrassing defeat. Hamas, which had been expected to perform well in the May 22 elections, had earlier said that voting in east Jerusalem should take place without Israel’s permission. It slammed the decision to delay the vote in a brief statement issued early Friday.More than 2.6 lakh village and ward volunteers in Andhra Pradesh, once celebrated as the government’s grassroots champions for their crucial role in implementing welfare schemes, are now in a dilemma after learning that their tenure has not been renewed after August 2023 even though they have been paid honoraria till June 2024. Disowned by both YSRCP, which was in power when they were appointed, and the current ruling TDP, which made a poll promise to double their pay, these former volunteers are ruing the day they signed up for the role which they don’t know if even still exists