Results of a recent poll revealed that imprisoned Palestinian parliamentarian Marwan Barghouti is likely to become Palestinian Authority (PA) president if current President Mahmoud Abbas does not run for presidency, Qudsnet.com reported yesterday.

The poll, which was conducted on Monday by the Arab World Institute for Research and Development (AWRAD), showed that Abbas would get 38 per cent of the votes compared to Hamas Chief Khaled Meshaal, who is expected to get only 21 per cent of votes.

Abbas is expected to get 42 per cent of the votes in the occupied West Bank and 36 per cent in the Gaza Strip, while Meshaal is expected to get 23 per cent of the votes in the West Bank and 20 per cent in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas Deputy Chief in Gaza Ismail Haniyeh would receive similar results as Meshaal if he competed against Abbas, the poll said.

However, Barghouti is expected to get 54 per cent of votes in the West Bank and 42 per cent in Gaza. If Haniyeh ran against him he’s expected to get 22 per cent of votes in Gaza and 19 per cent in the West Bank.

(MiddleEastMonitor.com)