Municipal elections: Fatah wins in Gaza

Hamas emerges defeated in the first elections in Gaza since 2006, which were held in the city of Deir el-Balah, despite the war. The vote, although limited, signals the difficulties of the Islamist movement among the population after two years of devastation by Israeli military forces. Hamas, which ousted the Palestinian Authority from Gaza in 2007, did not formally nominate candidates in the Strip, but some names on the lists were considered by residents and analysts to be close to the movement.

In the city of Deir el-Balah, with around 70,000 potential voters, the results showed that the Deir al-Balah unites us list, considered close to Hamas, won only two of the 15 seats up for grabs. The Nahdat Deir al-Balah list, backed by the Western-backed Palestinian National Authority's Fatah party, won six seats. While the remaining seven seats were won by two other groups in the Strip, Future of Deir al-Balah and Peace and Construction, not affiliated with either of the two main factions.

In the West Bank, where there were about one million potential voters and where voting was taking place for the first time since the beginning of the war, the candidates of Fatah - the formation of Mahmoud Abbas, President of the Palestinian National Authority - won, as expected, most of the municipalities. Also because Hamas, traditionally weak in the West Bank, decided not to participate.

The elections, in which turnout was necessarily low, took place 'at an extremely delicate time, amid complex challenges and exceptional circumstances', Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa said yesterday when the results were announced. "But," he added hopefully, "they represent an important first step in a broader national process aimed at strengthening democratic life and ultimately achieving the unity of the homeland".

Fatah spokesman Abdul Fattah Dawla noted that the turnout was similar to the last municipal elections in the West Bank in 2022. And he praised voters for their participation "despite the continued violence by Israel's military forces". In contrast, Hamas spokesman in Gaza, Hazem Qassem, downplayed the importance of the election results, saying they had no impact on wider national issues.