Political activities within the PA have also put the lie to the notion that Fatah is in any measurable way more peaceful in its intentions than Hamas. Differences between them are mostly illusory, in any event, and the participation of Hamas in the political fray has strengthened a militant agenda across the board. Conciliation with Israel is out. Fatah ads during the campaign have featured militaristic themes, with young men holding rifles and stones. One ad reads: "The first with the gun. The first with the stone. The fight and building will continue."

While a great deal is made of the significance of a Fatah victory, in real terms it is not likely to offer substantial benefits over a Hamas victory.

Soraida Hussein, head of research for Jerusalem's Women's Centre for Legal Aid and Counselling said, "Honor killing is nothing new... what is new is the whole wave of killing in 2005."

Recently in Gaza and the West Bank, Hamas has defined a new role for itself in guarding the morality of young Muslim women. A group of men who identified itself as a Hamas "morality squad" attacked 19-year-old Yousra al-Azam after she had sat at the beach with her husband-to-be and another couple. She was shot in the head and died in the street as her murderers beat her with batons. The growing influence of Hamas with its fundamentalist interpretations of Islamic law is concerning women's groups, which fear it will gain power and moral legitimacy in the coming elections.