GAZA, Dec. 18 (Xinhuanet) -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is facing pressure within his ruling Fatah movement to postpone the legislative elections set for Jan. 25, sources said Sunday.

    Those supporting delay of the elections argued that divisions in Fatah will weaken the party in the upcoming elections with the radical Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) posing a strong challenge.

    Fatah lawmaker Azzam Ahmed, one of the advocators for postponement, said, however, that Abbas is determined to hold the elections on its scheduled date.

    Meanwhile, urgent and intensive talks are being held within Fatah to reunite the party after two Fatah lists of candidates for the legislative elections were presented to the Central Elections Committee (CEC) last Wednesday.

    The Future list headed by young Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti, who is serving life imprisonment in Israeli jail, confronted an official Fatah list assembled by Abbas and the Fatah central committee, signalling a split of the dominant mainstream movement.

   A meeting aimed at merging the two lists was held on Saturday, according to Kadoura Fares, a senior Fatah member.But the Central Elections Committee declared a ban on such amove. Enditem