A poll released on Monday showed that 76 percent of Palestinians in the territories believe that the security situation in the territories has become worse since Hamas took over the Palestinian Authority government last year, with 80 percent saying that they fear for their personal security.

According to the poll, conducted by Nabil Kukali, director of the Palestinian Center for Public Opinion, some 60 percent of Palestinians are in favor of holding new elections for PA chairman and for the Palestinian parliament, but prospective voters are widely split over a choice for the top post.

Of the sample of 1,015 respondents in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, 35 percent said they would vote for Fatah incumbent Mahmoud Abbas as chairman, 26 percent would vote for Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas, and 22 percent for Fatah Tanzim leader Marwan Barghouti, serving life imprisonment in an Israeli prison after his conviction for involvement in terror attacks.