Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Dahlan faction form electoral alliance to challenge Fatah

Hamas and Islamic Jihad have reached an agreement with a faction led by Mohammed Dahlan, a former senior Fatah figure, to form an electoral alliance supporting a “unified national list” ahead of Palestinian legislative elections scheduled for 28th November.

According to the Associated Press, citing Palestinian officials on Tuesday, the alliance includes Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Fatah’s Democratic Reform Current, led by Dahlan, alongside other unnamed Palestinian groups. Efforts are also underway to expand participation and attract independent figures to the list, which would compete against Fatah, led by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Mohammed al-Hindi, deputy secretary-general of Islamic Jihad, confirmed the formation of the alliance in an interview with the Associated Press in Istanbul. He said the alliance would support a “unified national list” likely to include independent figures rather than being limited to members of the participating factions.

Al-Hindi said Islamic Jihad, which has historically refrained from participating in Palestinian Authority elections, would not field candidates directly under its own name but would instead “support a national list reached through consensus.”

If held as scheduled, the vote would be the first Palestinian legislative election since 2006. Palestinian elections have been postponed several times, most recently in 2021.

Abbas previously announced that legislative elections would be held in the Gaza Strip and West Bank on 28th November. Hamas won the 2006 Palestinian legislative elections, followed by months of political and security turmoil that culminated in Hamas taking control of the Gaza Strip in 2007.

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The Associated Press report identified opposition to Abbas’s leadership of the Palestinian Authority as a shared factor among members of the new alliance. Dimitri Diliani, a spokesperson for Dahlan’s faction, confirmed the electoral agreement and said that “the Palestinian Authority has failed Gaza and Palestinians everywhere.”

Diliani said other Palestinian groups had also joined the alliance and that efforts were underway to bring “all other factions and independent professionals” into what he described as a unified national reconstruction program.

In August, Hamas announced that its Gaza leader, Khalil al-Hayya, had met Dahlan in Cairo to discuss ways to “end the monopoly over national decision-making and formulate a comprehensive national strategy.”

Al-Hindi said the formation of the alliance followed unsuccessful efforts to bring Palestinian factions together through dialogue aimed at reaching broader internal consensus.

The election plans come amid continued Israeli military operations in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, as well as increased attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank. Israeli attacks have also continued in Gaza despite the ceasefire.

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