Palestinian democracy harmed by conflict
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President Mahmoud Abbas rules the West Bank by decree, Hamas controls Gaza with guns and parliament is paralyzed.
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RAMALLAH, West Bank -- When Abu Fahdi joined a Palestinian militant group and took up arms against Israel, he thought he was serving his people. Now he believes he only did them harm.
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RAMALLAH, West Bank  - A gunbattle sparked by  militants confronting moderate interim Palestinian leader  Mahmoud Abbas on a visit to Gaza underscores the urgent need  for elections to replace Yasser Arafat, Palestinian officials  said.
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He shook the world by demanding justice for the Palestinians. But Arafat's defiance ruined his chances to win them independence
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Freed from Yasser Arafat&#39;s one-man rule, Palestinians say they are eager and able to build the first real democracy in the Arab world, despite the dangers lurking on the road to Jan. 9 elections.
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Conflicting ideologies and internal divisions came to the forefront across Israel and the Palestinian territories.
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RAMALLAH, West Bank  - Fatah remains torn by internal divisions a month after it lost control of Gaza to Hamas and some believe Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas could also lose power in the West Bank if his faction does not reform.
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TONY EASTLEY: Since the death last month of Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat there&#39;s been a relative lull in violence against Israeli forces in the occupied territories.
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JERUSALEM -- Palestinian officials appealed yesterday for international monitors to help with their presidential elections and urged Israel's unilateral plan to withdraw from the Gaza Strip be folded into a stalled international peace plan.
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The death of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat a month ago appears to have created a new atmosphere for possible renewal of peace efforts in the Middle East.
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While violence was largely over, people worried about how a round of deadly infighting postponed hope for an independent and unified Palestinian state.
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Hope and skepticism as Israel and the Palestinians try again
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Description: Despite recent violence, there have been increasingly positive signs in the Middle East over the last few weeks. The death of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and the withdrawal of Israeli settlers may be thawing the hardened conflict.
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Palestinians must act quickly to hold elections for a leader to replace Yasser Arafat if they are to peacefully transform their political system after more than
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The death of Yasser Arafat, chairman of the Palestine National Authority (PNA), affects the nerve of the Middle East and the world as a whole.
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redeploying troops away from Palestinian towns and villages in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and halting military operations. obstacles,&quot; Ammar Dweik, the head of the Palestinian central elections commission, told Reuters.
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Mahmoud Abbasâs declaration was both a challenge to the Hamas movement and a risky effort to break a political stalemate that could backfire.