Palestinian Officials Reduce Hamas Seats By Two

Hamas supporters in Gaza on the day of the elections, 25 January (epa) 30 January 2006 -- The Palestinian Central Election Commission has reduced by two the number of seats won by the militant Hamas group in parliamentary elections last week.

A senior official in the elections commission said on 29 January the final official result now shows Hamas had won 74 rather than 76 seats in the 25 January elections, while the former ruling Fatah faction's tally was revised upward from 43 to 45.

The landslide victory for Hamas marked an end to Fatah's decade-long dominance of the parliament.

(AFP)