Palestine's vice president Hussein al-Sheikh hit back at Israel's foreign minister for criticising the postponement of Palestinian elections, saying that in fact it was Israeli actions that forced the delay.
Al-Sheikh said Israel's Gideon Saar was posing as a defender of Palestinian democracy while attacking President Mahmoud Abbas' decision.
"Israel's foreign minister now appears concerned about the future of democracy in Palestine after the legislative elections were postponed as a result of his crimes, measures, terror, and violence," al-Sheikh wrote on X platform.
"The one responsible for slaughtering our people every day now lectures us like a preacher."
Presidential decree
On Saturday, Abbas issued a formal presidential decree setting September 11, 2027, for presidential and legislative elections, superseding a scheduled polling date previously slated for this November.
Nearly 2.97 million Palestinians are eligible to vote, including 1.59 million in the occupied West Bank, 1.24 million in Gaza, and 140,000 residents of occupied East Jerusalem.
Palestinians last held legislative elections in 2006, when Hamas won a majority of seats.
