A Palestinian woman registers before casting her ballot at a polling station in the village of Beit Furik, southeast of the Israel-occupied West Bank city of Nablus, on Saturday. | AFP-JIJI

Palestinians voted in local elections on Saturday that for the first time in two decades include Gaza and will gauge the political mood as Israel's government seeks to destroy any future for a Palestinian state.

The West Bank-based Palestinian Authority (PA) hopes the symbolic inclusion of the Gazan city of Deir al-Balah will reinforce its claim to ​authority over the territory from which it was ousted by Hamas in 2007.

Gazans, who are struggling to meet their basic needs in ‌the devastated enclave, ‌welcomed the opportunity to vote.

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