Deputy Foreign Secretary Danny Ayalon says he does not foresee a pardon for arch terrorist Marwan Barghouti that would allow Barghouti to succeed Mahmoud Abbas as chairman of the Palestinian Authority (PA). Barghouti is serving five life sentences for his role in the terrorist killings of Israelis. He has topped a number of surveys for leadership of the PA since his imprisonment.

Ayalon says that Abbas's Thursday-evening announcement that he will not run for re-election in January's PA election is an internal PA matter and Israel will not get involved.