Hamas launched its vicious terrorist attack Oct. 7 not only as a strike against Israel, but also as part of its rivalry with Fatah and other groups to lead the Palestinian national movement. Since mid-2007, Hamas has ruled Gaza, while the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority has controlled the Palestinian areas of the West Bank. Palestinians have not voted for legislators since January 2006, and PA President Mahmoud Abbas still holds office after being elected to a four-year term in 2005. Addressing the Palestinian politics and rivalries behind the current war are Harel Chorev of the Moshe Dayan Center, Ghaith al-Omari of the Washington Institute and Yohanan Tzoreff of the Institute for National Security Studies. Ken Stein, CIE’s president and an Emory University emeritus professor of Middle East history and political science, moderates the discussion Jan. 17.
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