CAIRO, October 22 (RIA Novosti) - A total of 100 Palestinian couples will marry in a mass ceremony in Gaza on Friday, in a move demonstrating the positivity and strength of the Palestinian people, local media said.

The event dubbed "A ray of light in the dark kingdom," is expected to show Palestinians and the world, "the nation's positive mood in brutal conditions of the Israeli occupation," the media said.

"We also want to show Palestinians that marriage strengthens society, makes it stronger both morally and physically," the media quoted the organizers as saying.

In July 2005, 226 Palestinian couples tied the knot at a soccer stadium in the West Bank town of Nablus. The event, which was sponsored by the Islamic group Hamas, was watched by 60,000 spectators and aimed to show the world a different, more peaceful side to the radical movement.

The Gaza Strip has been under control of the radical Islamist group Hamas since June, which resulted in the sanctions and the suspending of humanitarian aid by the UN and the European Union, and the closure of borders with Israel.