GAZA -- The militant Islamic Hamas movement announced Wednesday it would boycott the election of the Palestinian Authority president set for Jan. 9.
Senior Hamas leader Isma'eel Haneya announced the decision at a news conference in Gaza City. He also called for parliamentary and local municipal elections to be held together with the election for the PA president.
Haneya read a Hamas statement declaring that members of the movement would neither run for office nor vote in the election.
The statement said the decision to boycott the election was based on the desire of the Palestinian people to hold legislative and municipal elections at the same time.
"The Palestinian official decision to only go for presidential elections depended on the Palestinian Authority's policy of performing single-handedly, and our decision to boycott was because it adopted this policy," Haneya told reporters.
