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The Rise and Fall Of the Palestinian Left

A book by Palestinian writer Jamil Hilal charts the rise and fall of leftist forces in Palestine, and asks what the future holds for them, writes Hazem Balousha.
Palestinian youths throw stones during clashes with Israeli security forces near al-Aqsa mosque on the compound known to Muslims as Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as Temple Mount in Jerusalem's Old City October 5, 2012. Israeli police hurled stun grenades to disperse dozens of the protesters who threw stones outside the mosque, Islam's third holiest site, after Friday prayers. Tensions flared this week at the site after police arrested Israeli ultranationalists who tried to hold prayers at the compound revered
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Leftist and independent Palestinian forces failed to seize a golden opportunity to establish themselves in the Palestinian street during the recent row between Fatah and Hamas. Instead, Palestinian politics has become more entrenched than ever before in the bipartisan party system.

In the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, secularist Fatah and Islamist Hamas have managed again to monopolize power politically, financially and on the ground. This stems from the inability of other groups, especially the leftists, to create a movement capable of challenging these two parties’ grasp on power in Palestine.

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