Hamas and Fatah are rival movements with different ideologies and competing institutions. Hamas won the 2006 legislative election and seized Gaza’s security apparatus in June 2007; since then, Hamas has ruled Gaza while the Fatah-led PA has administered parts of Judea and Samaria. The UN documented the takeover and the resulting split. The contemporaneous UN account
How the split works
The rivalry is not only ideological. It concerns who governs, commands security forces, represents the movement internationally and controls public institutions. Fatah dominates the PLO, while Hamas remains outside full PLO membership. Hamas’s armed wing is separate from PA security services.
- Ideology and political goals
- The 2006 election and 2007 takeover
- Hamas and PA governance
- Security coordination and armed factions
- The contest for the PLO
- Why reconciliation agreements failed
- Funding Hamas and the PA
- PA succession rules and Hamas
Why agreements have not reunited them
Agreements in 2011, 2014 and 2017 proposed elections, shared institutions and a transfer of administrative duties. They did not resolve control of armed forces or lead to a unified administration. For the terms and outcomes, see the reconciliation timeline.