Elections commission to start Gaza operations on Monday

The Central Elections Commission will begin operating in the Gaza Strip on Monday, officials said. Yasser al-Wadia, the general coordinator for independent political figures, told Ma'an on Saturday that a delegation from the CEC will add between 250,000-300,000 new Gazan voters to the electoral register. The CEC would undertake its work with impartiality, al-Wadia added. Hanna Nasser, the head of the Central Elections Committee, told Voice of Palestine radio this week that the CEC would prepare offices and train employees ahead of necessary preparations to register voters. After the commission starts work in the Gaza Strip, President Mahmoud Abbas will begin consultations on a consensus government as previously agreed. Members of the new cabinet will be agreed upon within 10 days from the start of consultations. Then the unity government will operate for six months, during which time it will set a date for general elections. Hamas and Fatah have led separate governments in Gaza and the West Bank since they split violently in 2007.