Dr Mahmoud al-Zahar is Hamas's leader in Gaza, and was very close to the movement's murdered leader, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin. He is believed to be second in command. In an interview with The Times on the eve of the election, he explains his views:
On giving up Hamas's weapons:
"Why, why do we have to give up our weapons? If Israel comes back to occupy our land, will your country come to defend our people?
"Why do we have to put up our guns while every country everywhere has in additional to a political system a strong military system in order to protect their homeland, their interests and their people.
So why do you consider us a unique phenomenon that we have to keep the Israeli border, to keep the Israeli aggression against our people, to keep our people inside Israeli jails without resistance?"
On negotiations with Israel:
"Negotiation is not a goal in itself. It is a method. It is not an objective.
"If Israel has anything to offer on the issues of halting attacks, withdrawal, releasing prisoners...then one thousand means can be found."
On the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails:
"Hezbollah receive their prisoners from Israel with the help of third parties. Germany was involved. There are third parties to solve the problems between us.
"Negotiation is not taboo. But the political crime is when we sit with the Israelis and then come out with a wide smile to tell the Palestinian people that there is progress, when in fact, there is not.
"The people before us, the Palestinian Authority negotiated with them for many, many years and reached lastly a deadlock. So why should we be a new copy like Fatah, wasting the time and money of the people negotiating with Israel for nothing?
"What are the project Israel has for the Palestinians? Up to this moment there no projects, no offers, no intention of giving the Palestinian people their legitimate demands.
"Negotiating with Israel is not haraam (prohibited under Islam). It is not a capital crime. It just wastes time and money."
Are analysts right to say that Hamas is more suited to opposition than power?
"These are not analysts and if they are analysing anything they are analysing anything except politics.
"We are the only side that have spoken about health, about sport, about culture, about agriculture, about every aspect. We discussed 29 items with people in our campaign.
"The others are using fabricated stories, fabricated leaflets and trying to touch the dignity of Hamas. So I think the people are voting for programmes, not voting for nasty words."
On relations with Israel:
"We have to disengage from Israel economically, on security, everything. We have to open the doors to the Arab and muslim countries.
"The first option is that we have to go away from Israel. Cooperation on the security field was a disaster for the Palestinians because it threatened the integrity of the Palestinians.
When the Palestinian Authority cooperated against Hamas on this security level that was a very critical moment that could have pushed some Hamas people to attack the PA.
"We destroyed our economical status by the linkage of our economy with the Israeli through what is called the Paris Agreement.
For example we pay 5.5 shekels (66p) per litre for petrol from Israel. From Egypt, one metre from our borders, it is one Egyptian pound (9p)
In 2004 we paid to Israel in one year 186 million dollars for electricity. If we took it from Egypt it will be only 20 million dollars. So we are here not speaking about politics, we are speaking about commercial relationships.
We have 10 commercial agreements with the Arabic and Islamic world without taxes. Israel takes from us 17 taxes and they are destroying our industry."
"Here we are not speaking about a synaptic process that we hate the Jews and we are going to kill them, but we are speaking about how to reconstruct the long-standing corruption in our society and the long-standing destruction of our infrastructure basis on all levels by cooperation with what is called Israel."
On Fatah corruption:
"Money went into the pockets of the corrupt people. Nothing was given to the ordinary classes of Palestinian society. 10% of Palestinian society takes 50% of the income and 90% takes the other 50%.
On fears that the world will cut off aid.
"40% of donated money is conditional. If the condition is to dismantle the resistance movment to prevent Hamas participating in the government when the people vote for Hamas, how can we justify to the Palestinians that we are taking money from a donor country at the expense of national interest?
"So we are not in need of the money, especially if it is at the expense of our national interest.
"But even so we ask everybody to help the Palestinian people, but without conditions and they have the full right to come, watch and observe where the money went, where it is used if they are looking to help the Pal people. But if they are going to help Israel's long standing occupation this is unacceptable.
On Europe:
"Believe me the European people came to me in the last month and they said within six months we are going to do our best in order to change the attitudes of our administration because we do not accept Hamas is a terrorist organisation, we differentiate between a liberation movement and a terrorist organisation. And believe me sooner or later the European countries in particular are going to change their mind concerning their attitude with Hamas.
"We have a full programme, a full agenda to run self-sufficient in every aspect. We are not boycotting our relations with European countries.
"We have no objection to dealing with anybody, but not at the expense of our national interest."
On relations with the United States:
"With America in such a 'dirty man' period I think nothing can be changed. Because of their aggression against Afghanistan, against Iraq against Egypt, against Syria, against Lebanon, against Palestine cannot actually aid the Palestinian goal.
"In American there is a Christian Zionism. They believe Jesus will return for the second 1000 years. You heard from Bush when he said 'It is a new Crusade'. What is the meaning of Crusade? He is arousing a deep hatred, an historical hatred in this area.
"The F16 which destroyed my house is American. The Apache helicopters are American. The international decisions in the Security Council backing Israel are American. The pressure on you to help the Israelis and to consider Hamas terrorist is American.
"So in order to satisfy the Americans and deal with them we have to close our eyes and put our minds in our pockets? It's nonsense."
But will you will deal with the US?
"They are welcome. We are going to speak to them by all means. But we are differentiating between the previous period and the expected era.
"There will be a new policy. They have to change their policy, not because of Hamas's interests. They discovered after the attack on Iraq that they are suffering from a big hatred, a bad feeling from the Arabic and Islamic world and also the international community. What is running against America is anti-American attitude, anti-American government and anti-American President.
"Why? Because of their aggression against the Arab countries, against the weak countries. They arrange for a very dirty policy in the Middle East. They attacked Afghanistan and put in (Hamid) Karzai, an American collaborator, and put in a corrupt Iraqi collaborator. And they arranged to dismantle the security of Egypt by arousing the protests of Christianity and Islam. Also they tried to interfere in Saudi Arabia. Now they destroy the integrity of Lebanon. Now they are threatening the situation in Syria.
"What is running here is big crimes, international crimes."
On the situation in Afghanistan:
"The US know nothing about the Taleban. They said the Taleban do not allow women to be educated.
"If you are going to compare who is for the benefit of Afghanistan, Taleban or Karzai. Karzai the American collaborator, American spy or the Taleban who prevented internal war? Who is dangerous? Taleban or Mr Bush, for the international community."
How does Hamas compare with the Taleban?
"I will give you a personal example. My wife was a teacher, until the Israelis attacked my house and broke her back. My first child, a daughter, is an engineer. My second (his son Khaled) was studying for a Masters degree at Salford University in Finance until he was killed by the Israelis. The third, a daughter, is an English teacher. The third woman has graduated from accounting high school. The younger three boys are candidates for university. So I think this is a good answer to your question."
Will you form a government?
"On the second day we are going to meet Mr Abbas and tell him, we are ready to co-operate with you. On the same day we are going to meet Fatah and other parties that are in the parliament. We are going to offer to them our projects, well known. How we are going to solve the problems of health, education, agriculture. We are going to speak to the Egyptians about opening the gate between us and them. We are going also to meet all the representatives and embassies from here to express our feelings and to express our policies.
"And we are going to start very rapidly the establishment of an administration according to the results of the election."
How will Hamas make its internal decisions?
"Why are you interested in that? We have no problems. We are not using guns to choose our representatives. We are not using guns in the primaries. We use knives. (Joking.)
How important is the next week for Hamas?
"It is good for the history of Palestine because the corrupted system should reach an end for the benefit of the Palestinian people. For Hamas it will give a second stage towards being legitimate. We achieved the first process: the legitimacy of fighting against the enemy and achieving success. The second is constitutional."
Have you moved from being the IRA to being Sinn Fein?
(Laughs. No answer.)
