I'm not a degreed historian, generally eschew "alternative history," and am probably dated and jaded at my 80 yo. But my recall of reading such as the Washington Report On Middle East Affairs in the 1990s remains IMO valid: Hamas' forming leadership and national spirit, mid-'80s, led the movement to consider that the PLO-cum-Fatah-cum-PA was already tending to tend to itself and its entrenchment rather than to the people of Palestine and their legitimate social, political, human-rights, justice, freedom-from-oppression/illegal occupation et al aspirations. That reality was reinforced for me by WRMEA's reports that Intifada I (1987 start?) first featured Palestinian women taking to the streets of Palestine, beating rhythmically on pots and pans, and chanting "No to Occupation! Yes to Dignity, our Rights, and Freedom!"

I first took up the Palestinian cause in 1964 while studying the Arabic language, culture, and extant facts at the Defense Language Institute, Monterey, CA. That's 60 years and counting....