Young activists in the ruling Fatah Party have broken off to form their own faction, dealing a bitter blow to Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas ahead of January parliamentary elections and possibly boosting the electoral prospects of Hamas militants.

Fatah officials were negotiating feverishly with the new faction's leader, jailed uprising leader Marwan Barghouti, and his associates yesterday in an effort to keep them in the party.

Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said the Fatah list would be reworked to put young activists in top spots where chances of election are best.

But Barghouti supporters said he was determined to contest the January 25 vote on a separate slate after Abbas stacked the top of the Fatah list with corruption-tainted old-timers, largely disregarding the results of recent primaries that young activists won.

"It's too late," said Kadoura Fares, a leader of the young activists. "We approved primary elections to choose our candidates, but the president did not abide by that. They went with the old system of masters and slaves, and now we are more determined to go ahead with our list."

Local elections were being held yesterday in 42 West Bank towns, including the cities of Nablus and Ramallah. The results were likely to give an indication of the split's effect on next month's election. The Islamic militant group Hamas is hoping to capitalize on the disarray in Fatah.

Barghouti, serving five life terms in an Israeli prison for involvement in deadly attacks, has emerged as the most popular Fatah leader in West Bank primary elections. Former West Bank security chief Jibril Rajoub and Gaza strongman Mohammed Dahlan joined Barghouti in his new party, Fatah leaders said, adding weight to the list.

Barghouti's wife, Fadwa, submitted the breakaway slate of candidates, under the name, "The Future," to Palestinian election officials just before a midnight deadline Wednesday for parties to register candidates.

Fatah, the party of the late leader Yasser Arafat, has ruled Palestinian politics for four decades, gaining a reputation for corruption and nepotism along the way.

(China Daily December 16, 2005)