Palestinians cast historic vote

Driving much of the dissatisfaction with the PA is the lawlessness that has gripped Gaza since Israeli disengagement last year. At a polling station there, a spurt of machine-gun fire rang out. Voters and election workers barely flinched as sporadic gunfire has become all too common in the coastal strip.

There was plenty else to fuel the anxiety. Hamas leader Mahmoud az-Zahar predicted there would be voter fraud, and last month a Fatah primary in Gaza was cancelled because of attacks on voting booths. But voting Wednesday was festive nonetheless. Banners of Fatah yellow and Hamas green fluttered from taxis and minivans ferrying groups of voters to the polls.

"Congratulations, Palestine for the day of democracy, the day of freedom," crooned a singer on a radio station.

In the southern Gaza town of Rafah, voters cast ballots at a school surrounded by bullet-ravaged buildings, a grim reminder of the five-year Israeli war against the Palestinians.

Atidal Hafagah says the outer wall of her house was once destroyed by the Israelis, but life has improved since the September withdrawal of Israeli settlers from Gaza. A black hijab covering her face, Hafagah says she voted for Hamas, which she thought would rid the PA of corruption and institute Islamic rule.

Indeed, Mr. Mubarek says that Hamas gradually will change Palestinian society so that it conforms with Islamic law, or sharia. For example, he says, Hamas will see to it that the casino in Jericho will be closed down, since gambling is forbidden in Islam.

He says that it should be mandatory that people give zakkat, or charity, which is one of a Muslim's five major religious duties. "Christians will pay a different kind of tax," he adds, "and we will consider Christians as full citizens. We will deal with the minorities in Palestine according to Islamic rules."

Campaign pledges like these may have attracted some voters, but they quickly turn others off - including other Muslims.

At the Deheishe Refugee Camp in Bethlehem, secular Palestinians were trying to round up support for a leftist party, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, one of 11 lists in the race.

"Hamas wants an Islamic state, not a Palestinian state," says Mohammed Ramadan, a schoolteacher who was dismayed by growing support for Hamas. "We believe we need to build our state with a political and social program, without imposing Islam on people."

Outside the polling station in Dar Salah, a large village southeast of Jerusalem, Hamas certainly seemed the most palpable presence.

Although members of Fatah were elected last year to lead the local council, posters of Hamas carpeted the ramshackle town overlooking the desert. Most of the posters featured Sheikh Ahmed Yassin and Abdul Aziz Rantissi, two top Hamas leaders assassinated by Israel in 2004.

A white four-wheel drive vehicle, festooned with Hamas flags, sat parked at the entrance to the school where voters entered.

"We will cooperate with anyone who has clean hands, who safeguards the Palestinian people, and who opposes the occupation," says Nidal Huzeibi, the man with the keys. "But I totally reject recognition of Israel because they don't give us our rights," he says. "I'm 100 percent sure that Hamas will soon be the largest force on the Palestinian street."

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, whose seat is not up for reelection, said Wednesday that the PA will renew negotiations with Israel even if Hamas is a partner in the government. But the US and Israel have made clear that they will not deal with Hamas, which they consider a terrorist group.

Former President Jimmy Carter, heading a 900-member observer mission to the elections, told reporters Wednesday that the US would distinguish being Hamas in the legislative branch and Hamas at the helm: "The US government is prepared to continue to deal with the Palestinian Authority with Hamas members in the government. But if Hamas members become part of the executive branch, US law would preclude dealing with them."

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