Thursday, January 26 2006 14:25 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Ramallah (West Bank): The radical Islamists of Hamas looked set for a stunning victory today (Jan 26,2006) over Fatah in the Palestinian election, plunging the stalled West Asia peace process into further turmoil.

Senior officials from Fatah, the movement which has dominated Palestinian politics for years, privately acknowledged that they had been beaten into second place by Hamas which was contesting its first parliamentary election.

The central elections commission said the official result would not be announced until 7 pm local time (2030 IST), but Hamas was confident that it would now have an absolute majority in the 132-seat parliament.

Israel warned it would not do business with a group, which still advocates the use of violence and refuses to recognise its right to exist.

US President George W. Bush also cold-shouldered Hamas, reaffirming its status in Washington's eyes as a terrorist organisation.

Exit polls released after voting ended late yesterday (Jan 25,2006) had forecast that while Hamas would deprive Fatah of the clear majority that it has enjoyed since the parliament was first elected a decade ago, it would still only come second.

By today, however, Fatah was conceding that the result would be even worse.

"Hamas has beaten Fatah in the elections," said one senior official who stood for election to the Ramallah-based Parliament.

"They have won more seats than us in the legislative council," another candidate who was a senior member of the Fatah campaign said.