RAMALLAH, West Bank, June 9 (Reuters) - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's popularity rebounded in a survey released on Monday after he renewed his call for dialogue with the Hamas Islamists who control the Gaza Strip. The poll, conducted by the Palestinian Centre for Policy and Survey Research, suggested that Abbas would win 52 percent of the vote against 40 percent for Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh if a presidential election were held in the Palestinian territories now. A survey by the same group in March showed Haniyeh leading Abbas by 47 percent to 46. The new poll was conducted shortly after Abbas called for "a national and comprehensive dialogue" with Hamas, which seized Gaza from Abbas's more secular Fatah faction last June. Abbas's call was welcomed by Haniyeh, though aides to Abbas quickly insisted there was no change in his demand that Hamas give up control of the Gaza Strip. The polling centre said the continued closure of Gaza's border crossing with Egypt was undercutting Hamas's standing. Haniyeh served as prime minister in the Hamas-led Palestinian government that was dismissed by Abbas after Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip from Fatah-led forces. The survey found that, if new parliamentary elections were to take place, Hamas would receive 31 percent while Fatah would receive 43 percent. The March poll had given Hamas 35 percent and Fatah 42 percent. The new survey also found that Fatah leader Marwan al-Barghouthi, imprisoned in Israel and seen as a possible successor to Abbas, would defeat Haniyeh by 27 percentage points if he were able to stand. (Reporting by Mohammed Assadi; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
Palestinian youths throw stones at Israeli border police officers during a protest against the construction of Israel's controversial barrier in the West Bank village of Nilleen, near Ramallah, June 4, 2008. ...
