Abbas delays Palestinian elections until September 2027

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has postponed legislative elections and scheduled both parliamentary and presidential polls for September 11, 2027, citing Israeli restrictions and security concerns.

A decree reported by official news agency WAFA said Israeli military operations, settlement expansion, movement restrictions and withholding of Palestinian tax revenues had hindered preparations. It also cited Gaza’s humanitarian crisis and reconstruction challenges.

Two Palestinian officials told Reuters that leaders of Abbas’s Fatah movement and rival Hamas had agreed to delay the elections at a meeting in Cairo.

Palestinians have not held legislative elections since 2006 or a presidential vote since 2005. Abbas has governed by decree since his presidential mandate expired in 2009.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar rejected Abbas’s explanation, calling it an attempt to evade responsibility and accountability.

- MaT