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Palestinian Authority Cracks Down on Opposition
(Al Jazeera) Jehad Barakat - The Palestinian Authority has intensified its crackdown on political opponents in the West Bank in recent months, analysts say. The PA has been obstructing events to welcome released Palestinian prisoners affiliated with parties other Fatah, particularly Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Moreover, funeral processions for Palestinian "martyrs" have been disrupted by PA security forces in an effort to suppress public displays of support for rival parties. On several occasions, PA security forces have carried out preemptive arrests and fired tear gas at crowds. Political analyst Hani al-Masry, director of Masarat - The Palestinian Center for Policy Research and Strategic Studies in Ramallah, said, "The PA fears the growth of other factions, as well as the decline in its standing, and [potential] collapse." A Dec. 14 poll by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research showed that the head of the Hamas political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, would defeat President Mahmoud Abbas by 68% to 35%, 71% disapproved of Abbas' performance, and Hamas would defeat Fatah in legislative elections by 38% to 35%.