JERUSALEM (AP) — The first Palestinian elections in more than 15 years could be canceled or delayed because of a dispute over voting in east Jerusalem. President Mahmoud Abbas could use the issue as a pretext for avoiding an outcome that threatens his hold on power. The Palestinians view east Jerusalem as the capital of their future state, and Abbas has said its residents cannot be excluded from parliamentary elections planned for May 22. But the Palestinian Authority may need Israel’s permission for some 6,000 residents to cast ballots. Israel considers all of Jerusalem to be its unified capital and bars the PA from operating there.
