{"id":202223,"date":"2005-01-10T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-03-12T18:19:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/?p=202223"},"modified":"2019-03-12T18:19:37","modified_gmt":"2019-03-12T18:19:37","slug":"auto-insert-202223","status":"publish","type":"document","link":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/document\/auto-insert-202223\/","title":{"rendered":"PACE satisfied with Palestinian presidential election – Council of Europe press release\/Non-UN document"},"content":{"rendered":"
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PACE satisfied with the election of the President of the Palestinian Authority<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

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\nJerusalem, 10.01.2005 – <\/strong>A delegation (1) of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), led by Lord Kilclooney, former Minister at Home Affairs in Northern Ireland, observed the 9 January election of the President of the Palestinian Authority. <\/p><\/div>\n

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Palestinians voted in three distinct areas: the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza. The delegation was satisfied with the efficient organisation of this election and commends Palestinian electoral officials and international agencies concerned on the excellent job they have done in the run up to the vote, in difficult circumstances within an illegally occupied territory. <\/p><\/div>\n

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The overall high voter turnout clearly signals the belief of the Palestinian electorate in the democratic process. With the election of the new President, a new window of opportunity is opened for a renewed dialogue between Palestinians and Israelis. The momentum must not be lost and contacts should resume at the earliest to avoid deadlock and intensified violence. We expect all sides to show the political will to make headway towards a meaningful negociating process. The Palestinian people have expressed their hope. We believe that trust could be restored. <\/p><\/div>\n

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While satisfied with the way in general the election was conducted, the <\/p><\/div>\n

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delegation deplores a number of serious matters such as: <\/p><\/div>\n