Palestinian Elections Committee Slams Israel for Municipal Candidates’ Arrest

The Palestinian Central Elections Committee condemned Israel for arresting candidates running in the Palestinian local council elections in the West Bank, after the Israel Defense Forces on Monday arrested Islam al-Taweel, a mayoral candidate and head of the “Al-Bireh Brings Us Together” electoral list in al-Bireh, a city on the outskirts of Ramallah, about 15 kilometers north of Jerusalem. Three candidates have been arrested in the past few days. The committee said the arrests were blatant interference in Palestinian internal affairs and called for the detained candidates’ immediate. The Israeli army declined to comment on the arrest. The first phase of the Palestinian municipal elections took place on December 11, 2021, in 376 West Bank localities. The second phase is to be held on Saturday, March 26.