Fatah spokesman Jamal Nazzal said Tuesday that the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) in Strasbourg is expected to grant the Palestinian parliament the “partner for democracy” status. Nazzal, speaking to Voice of Palestine radio, said the importance of this move lies in PACE’s criteria for granting the status, including the readiness of state institutions as well as the applicability of democracy and women’s rights. Palestine’s fulfillment of the formal criteria set forth in PACE’s Rules of Procedure is a European response to Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman’s statements that Palestine is not ready to be a state.