The debate over the participation of Jerusalem's Arabs in the elections is intensifying: Walid Abu Tayeh, the Arab candidate who announced his candidacy for mayor and city council, told Israel Hayom that he is not concerned about the fatwa forbidding Arab residents of Jerusalem from participating in the elections.
The fatwa was ratified yesterday at a meeting held by members of the Fatwa Council, chaired by Mufti Muhammad Hussein, according to which voting or candidacy in elections is prohibited.
"Let them make a fatwa, it doesn't matter much to me, I continue until the end," Abu Tayeh said. "I'm not going to back down and I'm not even thinking about quitting the contest, they won't deter me. The fatwa and the calls to boycott the elections can actually strengthen me and my chances in the campaign," he said.
Attorney Abu Tayeh, born in Nazareth and an Israeli citizen who has lived in Jerusalem's Beit Hanina neighborhood for the past 30 years, recently announced that he will run in the elections for mayor and city council of Jerusalem, which will be held at the end of October.
Those close to him claim that despite the sweeping ban from the Fatwa Council, the Palestinian leadership in Ramallah did not demand that he withdraw his candidacy.
According to them, Abu Tayeh, who is abroad, received a message from Mahmoud Abbas' people a few days ago, on the eve of the Palestinian Authority chairman's trip to China, according to which "participation and running in the elections should be solely on the basis of issues related to the conduct of daily life and municipal services while distancing himself from the political issue."
In a message Abu Tayeh received, he was told that "the issue of Jerusalem is complicated. Neither the PLO nor the Palestinian Authority is willing to give a green or red light on this issue," and that "the matter must be done through dialogue and consultation with Israeli Arabs."
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