Funerals for those killed in air strike, plus municipal elections

(15 Dec 2005) Ramallah, West Bank 1. Palestinian voters gathering to vote 2. People looking at list of entitled voters 3. Inside polling station, people registering to vote, tracking shot of man voting 4. Pull out from sign on the voting cabin reading in Arabic: "The Local Elections High Commission" to man behind the voting cubicle 5. Man putting ballot paper into ballot box 6. Palestinian policeman guarding voting Al Bira, West Bank 7. Hamas flags on cars 8. Palestinian women wearing Hamas banners 9. Man holding picture of a party leaflet Nablus, West Bank 10. Car with placard on top saying in Arabic: "Abbas Jabber for a better future" (he is candidate of the Future Party) 11. Close up of the placard on car 12. Wide shot Hamas volunteers sitting at table on side of street 13. Mid shot Hamas volunteers checking list of voters 14. Representative of the Central Election Commission looking for names on list at polling station 15. Close up of list of entitled voters 16. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Vox pop, Fatah voter: "Elections are going smoothly. I voted for Fatah." 17. Tracking shot of Palestinian man voting Gaza City, Gaza strip 18. Wide tracking shot of body on stretcher covered in cloth being carried out of the Shifa hospital morgue 19. Closer shot as another two coffins, draped with black cloths, are carried by crowds 20. Mid front shot of men chanting slogans carrying body on stretcher, draped in cloth Tel Hawa, south of Gaza city, Gaza Strip 21. Various of gunmen and crowds carrying two coffins to the funeral, gunmen shooting in air, carrying Hamas flags (funeral in Tel Hawa is just for the two bodies in coffins) STORYLINE: Young activists in the ruling Fatah Party, led by jailed uprising leader Marwan Barghouti, have broken off to form their own faction, dealing a bitter blow to Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas ahead of January parliamentary elections and boosting the electoral prospects of Hamas militants. Fatah officials were negotiating feverishly with Barghouti and his associates on Thursday 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 old-timers. Aides said Abbas talked to Barghouti by telephone to try to avert the split. Local elections on Thursday in 42 West Bank towns, including the cities of Nablus and Ramallah, were likely to be a barometer of the split's effect on the parliamentary vote. The Islamic militant group Hamas is hoping to capitalise on the disarray in the ruling party. 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. Dahlan, however, said the rebels are still loyal to Fatah - indicating that their real goal is to take over the party. Barghouti's wife, Fadwa, submitted the breakaway slate of candidates, under the name, "The Future," to Palestinian election officials just before a midnight deadline on Wednesday for parties to register candidates. Half an hour before the deadline, old-time Fatah officials presented their list of candidates, and aides said Abbas talked to Barghouti by telephone afterward to try to avert the split. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...