Secretary General of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement said on Sunday that the Palestinian people have already announced their ideas in elections, rejecting a call by Abu Mazen, the President for new elections.

In an interview with al-Jazirah TV in Damascus, Ramadhan Abdallah Shalah said "We have asked all groups to keep calm."

He stressed that the current situation is not limited to Hamas and Fatah, but to all the Palestinians and the future of Palestine.

"We ask our brother Mahmoud Abbas to open the doors of negotiation," Shalah added.

Shalah then touched on a similar stance by Faruq Kaddumi a representative of Fatah Movement who earlier annonced, "There is no justification for early elections. Such a demand doesn't have a legal base because the Constitution has not granted the Palestinian Authority the right to close down the Legislative Council."

"That is why we consider such a demand as meaningless and declare that people cannot solve the problem by coming to streets," Shalah added asking, "Do you expect everyone to solve the problem in his own way by coming to the streets?"

He described negotiation as the only possible solution to the crisis and said all Palestinians must realize where all their national interests lie.

"We suffer from occupation. The government is not the problem maker," he noted.

Referring to the recent discrepancies between Fatah and Hamas, Shalah said, "What happened yesterday in Ramallah was a shame... Why should people be beaten in a peaceful demonstration?"

He called on all groups to realize national interests.

Addressing those who are after early elections he said, "We remind those who want to retrieve to people's vote for solving the problem that the Palestinian people have already announced what they want to say by voting at the polls."

Islamic Jihad's Secretary General stressed on negotiation as the only way out of Palestine's crisis.

Addressing Abu Mazen (President Mahmoud Abbas) he said, "We stretch our hand to you and say you are a wise man and shouldn't let others drown the ship you are captaining." 

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