AMMAN: Palestinian political leaders, experts, and opinion makers have expressed a high degree of skepticism about the recently announced Palestinian reconciliation agreement. Rival factions signed an agreement in Algiers on Thursday aimed at resolving 15 years of discord. It states that elections will be held within a year after months of talks mediated by Algeria. The
(RNS) Last year, Israel was under a strict lockdown to thwart the spread of COVID-19. Worshippers were forbidden to pray at mosques, synagogues and churches, even during Ramadan, Passover and Easter.
AMMAN: The sudden escalation and spread of Palestinian protests in reaction to racist incitement by Jewish groups have brought the issue of the status of occupied Jerusalem to center stage.
Majdi Khalidi, the senior diplomatic adviser to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, told Arab News that contacts have been made with other Arab and Islamic countries around the world, calling on them to make public statements on the importance of elections that should take place in Jerusalem.
Khalidi said that no one can bypass the people of Jerusalem.
“What is happening reminds the world that East Jerusalem is an occupied territory and the capital of the Palestinian state,” he said. “It shows that Jerusalem Palestinians must be allowed to participate in the elections.”
April 13, 2021
After years of the Jerusalem Waqf Council being dormant with very few changes occurring, a more vibrant council is emerging with the Jordanian government taking a more active role in making changes to ensure the council is more reflective of Palestinians in Jerusalem.
Established after 1967, the council is usually composed of about 11 Islamic religious personalities. Numbers would sometimes change if members passed away or were unable to fulfill their duties. But in February 2019, the Jordanian government took the previously unprecedented move of widening the membership and adding nonreligious political local leaders and experts to the council. The Jordanian government attempted to avoid political appointees so as not to be accused of interfering in local Palestinian politics.