Senior Palestinian official Jibril Rajoub has come under criticism for calling Palestinian Christians the “Merry Christmas bunch.”
Jibril Rajoub, a prominent Palestinian leader and one of Palestinian Authority (PA) head Mahmoud Abbas’ possible successors, made the offensive comment during an interview with Egyptian television in which he assailed the Christians for supposedly voting for Hamas in the last elections 10 years ago, Israel Radio reported Sunday.
Rajoub, a former terrorist who served time in Israeli prisons and who currently serves as the head of the Palestinian soccer federation, also faced criticism from broad Palestinian circles.
The Islamic Jihad terror group, which has a political faction, called the comments “irresponsible and inappropriate,” and the Popular Front (PFLP) said there “would be a score to settle.”
Rajoub’s Fatah party’s branch in Bethlehem – where the largest concentration of Christians live in the PA – called on him to apologize.
Israel Radio reported that Fatah, Abbas’ political party, is worried about losing the Christian vote in the upcoming local elections at the beginning of October.
By: United with Israel Staff