According to a new poll by Fafo, Palestinians see national reconciliation as more important than peace talks with Israel. Eighty-five per cent of those polled would like to see negotiations between Fatah and Hamas. Fifty-eight per cent say they want peace negotiations with Israel, which is a decline by 20 percentage points from a similar poll in December 2006.
Palestinians are in disagreement on the formation of the recent government. Half of the population believes the President did the right thing by instating the Emergency government. However, thirty-one per cent of the Palestinians have little or no trust in the Emergency Government. A similar share of the population is distrustful of the Hamas Government in Gaza. Thirty-seven per cent think Mr. Fayyad‘s government is Palestine‘s legitimate government, while 28% believe Mr. Haniyeh‘s Hamas government is legitimate. The remainder of those polled - 35% - believes neither government is legitimate.
If elections took place today, Fatah would win a majority of the popular vote by a clear margin. Fatah would receive 45% of the votes of those polled and Hamas 22%.
Forty-four per cent of the population want to establish Islamic rule of law in Gaza. 89% of these want the same for the West Bank.
Fafo carried out an opinion poll of 1,953 adult individuals in the West Bank and Gaza Strip in the period 2-12 July. The study entailed face-to-face interviews with persons aged 18 years and older. It gathered information on all household members‘ living conditions and the selected individuals‘ attitudes regarding current political affairs, elections, the security situation, and relations with Israel. The poll was funded by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
http://www.fafo.no/ais/middeast/opt/opinionpolls/poll2007.htm