[link|http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/watch/Peacewatch/peacewatch2002/385.htm|http://www.washingto...watch2002/385.htm]
However, in terms of at least one key civil liberties issue -- the relationship between religion and state -- the constitution does take a step backward from the Basic Law. For example, not only is Islam deemed the official religion of the state (as is the case in the Basic Law), but "principles of Islamic Sharia [Islamic law] are a primary source for legislation" (Draft Constitution, Article 7). Elsewhere, the draft paints the issue of women's rights in a distinctly Islamist hue: women, it states, "have rights and duties as guaranteed by Sharia and established in law" (Draft Constitution, Article 63). This creeping Islamization should be a special cause of concern to U.S. officials both in terms of civil liberties in a future Palestine as well as in terms of its impact on larger political and strategic issues.thanx,
bill