Compiled by Ryder Zufi
The Palestinians have had two primary political factions for at least two decades: Hamas and Fatah, the dominant group within the PLO. Fatah, led by Yasser Arafat and then Mahmoud Abbas, has controlled the Palestinian Authority and thus the West Bank since the mid-1990s. But Hamas won a plurality in the last Palestinian legislative elections, held in January 2006, and has run Gaza since a brief civil war against Fatah in mid-2007. Hamas mixes Palestinian nationalism with Islamism, or political Islam, and wins support in comparison with Fatah by being the organization of action, not words. The two parties’ visions for the Palestinian future are irreconcilable, despite multiple attempts at a unity government since 2014.