The Palestinian parliamentary legislative elections 25 January 2006

Abstract

The Palestinian parliamentary elections, which were held on 25 January 2006, represent a historical turning point in the fate of Palestinians. After Arafat, the expectations of Palestinian politics decreased to a minimum with the rising concern over a civil war in the Palestinian territories. The result will be the worst of the alternatives if one pays attention to the prevalent discussions before the elections. Palestinian issues attract enormous attention, but one only recognizes a limited number of comprehensive analyses to understand the roots and the routes of the problems. This paper aims to discuss the Palestinian parliamentary elections in a wider context, which will also cover the implications of the Hamas victory in the elections on Palestinian politics and, in general, for the future of the peace process.