Palestine 11.2013 Perspectives from Palestine The Regional Powers’ Dr. Adnan Abu Amer November 2013 Hamas’ election victory in 2006 resulted in the movement becoming an important player in Palestinian politics, internally, regionally and internationally. Hamas successfully positioned itself as an alternative to the politics of the Fatah party, and as a result, both parties compete not only for support within the Palestinian Territories themselves, but also regionally and internationally. The ensuing axes of partnerships that developed embedded the division between Hamas and Fatah within a regional struggle between an‘axis of moderation’ and an‘axis of rejection’. Therefore, events in neighboring countries, especially in Egypt, have had a noticeable impact on Palestinian politics and the position of the competing political fractions vis-á-vis the relative strengths of the axes. Both Hamas and Fatah have rarely missed a chance to take advantage of the other’s relative weakness and have made little progress to overcome their differences. Thus, reconciliation appears a distant goal. At the same time, while regional powers have viewed Hamas and Fatah as players in a its advantageous position and control over the Palestinian territories.