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Rival "Fiefdoms" Eclipsing Dream of Palestinian State

[Reuters] Luke Baker - At their closest point, the Gaza Strip and West Bank are barely 45 km (28 miles) apart, but they are increasingly two separate worlds. The two Palestinian territories have always had a different look and feel, but in recent weeks the separation has grown starker to the point of severance. The rise to power of Hamas has allowed it to tighten its grip on its base in Gaza, while Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah, which held power for more than a decade before Hamas' election victory in January, has sought to consolidate its stronghold in the West Bank. The result, political scientists say, is the emergence of two increasingly antagonistic and well-armed "fiefdoms" with competing ideological, social, and political visions. "It is a very feasible possibility that Gaza becomes a Hamas state and the West Bank a Fatah state," said Mordechai Kedar, a lecturer in Arab affairs at Israel's Bar-Ilan University.
2006-10-12 01:00:00
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