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![Hamas seized control of Gaza last June by driving out forces loyal to President Abbas [AFP]](http://mwcnews.net/images/stories/Hamas/2/3/security-force-1.jpg "Hamas seized control of Gaza last June by driving out forces loyal to President Abbas [AFP]") | | Hamas seized control of Gaza last June by driving out forces loyal to President Abbas [AFP] |
One year after Hamas, the Palestinian movement, seized control of the Gaza Strip from President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah party, leaders say Palestinian unity remains an elusive dream.
Ghazi Hamad, a senior aide to Ismail Haniya, the leader of Hamas in Gaza, has acknowledged that the infighting has damaged the Palestinian cause.
"This is a catastrophe, a disaster. We have to go back to national unity," Hamad said on Saturday.
On the first anniversary of the Hamas takeover, Palestinian newspaper colunmists echoed similar sentiments, calling on leaders to settle their differences through talks.
Hussein Hijazi, a columnist with the Palestinian Al Ayam newspaper, said: "It is clear today that the sharp polarisation between the two historic forces, Hamas and Fatah, has to be resolved through democratic elections or an armed confrontation will be inevitable."
Worsening situation Ahmed Yusuf, a senior Hamas official, agreed. "[Most] people are actually taking sides, and the polarisation became stronger than before," he said. Yusuf said the takeover had caused "damage to the Palestinian social fabric".
Sufferings in Gaza have multiplied since Hamas took over the territory. Israel has tightened its grip on the Gaza Strip, triggering a humanitarian crisis that has left Palestinians frustrated and angry.
Lama Hourani, a Palestinian women's rights activist, who lived in Gaza for 13 years, but moved following the takeover, said that Palestinians were sick of the division and longed for unity.
"We are all hopeless ... desperate. And you see from the polls nobody has trust in anything." The majority of Gaza's 3,900 factories have shut down since Israel tightened its blockade, barring most industrial materials. Palestinian officials estimate about 100,000 people have lost their jobs since June last year. "[We're] trying to survive individually," Lama said. "Trying to keep yourself away from all the problems, away from the corruption, away from the divisions, away from the occupation." Declining Hamas support Faris, a college graduate in Gaza agreed. "I regret voting for Hamas because they made a lot of promises during the campaign but didn't deliver any of their promises," he said. ![Hamas has built its own security force [AFP]](http://mwcnews.net/images/stories/Hamas/2/3/security-force-2.jpg "Hamas has built its own security force [AFP]") | | Hamas has built its own security force [AFP] |
A poll by the Palestinian Centre for Policy and Survey Research (PCPSR) have showed a decline in the popularity of Hamas and its leaders. Hamas came to govern the Palestinian territories in January 2006 elections on the back of an electoral campaign that promised to improve the quality of life for Palestinians and deliver Palestinian independence from Israeli occupation. But Hamas supporters say the true villians are the international community and the economic blockade that it imposed on the territory after Hamas's electoral victory. They say Hamas has helped in improving security in Gaza. "Internal security has improved," Kamal, a microbiology graduate and supporter of Hamas said. "We don't hear anymore that anyone was murdered, there are no more shootings, and there are no more kidnappings." But irrespective of the Hamas claims, Gaza remains far away from being an ideal place to live in. Poverty is rampant and malnutrition endemic. For most Palestinians, the way out of their misery and hopelessness is national unity. They say unless the leaders bury their differences and come together, sufferings of the ordinary Palestinians will not go away. And dreams of a Palestinian state will remain elusive.
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