Hamas won 40 seats, Fatah's bloc 38, and the socialist PFLP won three.
On Wednesday, there were student elections in Birzeit University near Ramallah, and Hamas's victory was much more substantial. The Islamist bloc won 25 seats, the Fatah bloc 20, and the PFLP six.
Since there aren't any real elections, these meaningless student elections are given outsized importance since they are the closest thing to democracy Palestinians ever see. But as anyone who is familiar with student councils knows, their power is practically nil, and the universities don't follow their decisions.
Since there aren't any real elections, these meaningless student elections are given outsized importance since they are the closest thing to democracy Palestinians ever see. But as anyone who is familiar with student councils knows, their power is practically nil, and the universities don't follow their decisions.
Even so, these elections do reflect how West Bank students think, and even in the heart of Fatah country, the Islamist terror groups won.
The Islamic bloc campaigns heavily referred to famous terrorists.
