The Palestinians’ satisfaction with Hamas’s performance in the war against Israel has reached its highest point since the terror group’s Oct. 7 massacre, while support for the Palestinian Authority and its ruling Fatah faction has plummeted, according to a poll published on Wednesday by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research.
When asked to rate the performance of various Palestinian actors during the war, Hamas took the lead among the respondents with 75% satisfaction, up five percentage points since March.
The opinion poll recorded a slight drop in support for the Hamas-led Oct. 7 massacre of some 1,200 people in Israel. Two-thirds said the terror group was “correct” in launching the murderous attack, down by four percentage points compared to three months ago.
However, Palestinians’ belief that Hamas’s terror assault “revived international attention” to their cause and could “lead to increased recognition of Palestinian statehood” rose by six points to 82%.
Fifty-one percent believe that Hamas terrorists are “the most deserving” of leading the Palestinian people, up from 49% three months ago. Meanwhile, 16% believe the P.A.'s Fatah faction is the most deserving.
According to the survey, 60% of Palestinians are in favor of disbanding the P.A. Only 9% of respondents expressed satisfaction with the performance of Mohammad Mustafa, who was appointed the governing body’s prime minister by Mahmoud Abbas in March.
Almost three-quarters of Palestinian Arabs believe that the government headed by Mustafa will fail to carry out reforms demanded by the Biden administration and Arab nations, according to the poll.
In a hypothetical election between Abbas and Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh, the latter terrorist would receive 43% of the vote, while only 11% would choose the current P.A. leader. Haniyeh received the highest support since before the war when 24% preferred him.
Almost 60% of Palestinians said they saw the “return of Hamas” in Gaza as the preferred outcome for the conflict, followed by 25% that preferred a “new P.A. under an elected president, parliament and government.”
The Ramallah-based Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research polled 1,570 Palestinian adults throughout Gaza, Judea and Samaria between May 26 and June 1. (The margin of error was +/- three percentage points, the NGO said.)
The Biden administration wants the P.A. to assume control of Gaza after the completion of Israel’s military operation against Hamas. Jerusalem vehemently rejects that due to Ramallah’s support for terrorism.
The U.S. State Department in December refused to rule out the possibility of Hamas terrorists retaining power or joining a Palestinian Authority-led governing body for the Gaza Strip, Judea and Samaria.
“Palestinians’ voices and aspirations must be at the center of post-crisis governance in Gaza, unified with the West Bank under the P.A.,” a U.S. government spokesperson told JNS, adding, “Ultimately, the future of Palestinian leadership is a question for the Palestinian people.”
