Poll: Palestinian Support For Hamas Increases After Gaza War

Support for the Hamas terrorist group has increased among Palestinians following the summer war with Israel, according to a poll released Tuesday by the Jerusalem Media and Communications Center.

The 1,200-person survey found that in Gaza and the West Bank, the percentage of Palestinian residents supporting Hamas rose from 17 percent before the war to 26 percent afterward, while trust for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah party slipped from 41.7 percent before the war to 35.1 percent after.

A strong majority of Palestinians-57 percent-believe that Hamas was victorious in the war, despite the heavy Palestinian casualties and vast destruction of Gaza’s infrastructure. The survey also found that Palestinians are now more in favor of armed conflict against Israel, growing from 31.5-percent supportive in April to 42.7 percent in October.

Nevertheless, the poll revealed that a majority of Palestinians-52.4 percent-still believe in conducting peace negotiations with Israel.

JNS.ORG

{Matzav.com Israel}