Thursday, December 14, 2006

Dealing with Hamas

It would appear that the bitter confrontation between Hamas and Fatah is heating up. The attempts to create a national-unity government between Hamas and Fatah has failed. Sporadic violence is starting with a number of assassinations of Hamas and Fatah operatives. Haniyah's visit to Iran to collect 200 or so millions for the PA and his comments that Iran gives the Palestinians "strategic depth" will only deepen the hostility with Fatah.

The issues at its core are ideological. Fatah accepts Israel's existence, they might not be happy about it but they more less accepts Israel's not going to disapper. From this flowed Fatah's decision in 1988 to accept the two state solution (UN Resolution 242) and the commencement of the Oslo agreement. Fatah, which dominated th PLO was always seen up until recently as representatives of Palestinian interests.

Hamas on the otherhand is a religiously ideologically driven movement have not accepted this reality. They are still stuck in their closed minded and anachronistic conception of the conflict. They refuse to recongise Israel and only are willing to reach a long term interim arrangement with Israel. In short, their goal is to transform all of Israel into Palestine. Despite their people needing overseas aid, Hamas refuse to budge. Affixed on ideological purity, Hamas are unable to even to come to terms with the practical reality of their people's own distress.

The moment for confrontation is moving nearer. Fatah with Abu Mazen at its head knows that in the WB they are strong but in Gaza are much weaker. They are looking to build up their strength for the inevitable confrontation. Abu Mazen knows the Hamas approach is a disaster for the Palestinians and will only move them further and further away from achieving a Pal. state.

It needs to be said openly: Hamas is the biggest impediment to the Israeli/Pal. conflict. Not Israel, not the settlers, not Fatah. It is Hamas, which has been the driver of terrorism since 1993, it was Hamas that primarily undermined Israel's faith in Oslo, and it is now Hamas, now being in power who are seeing their people rot in their ideological stubborness.

How this tension will play out, I don't know. For Israel's sake, Hamas has to be neutralised whether in the form of a national unity govt which accepts the quartet's three conditions, new elections or a coup de at. There will be no peace regardless of Israel's own actions, with such a dangerous and pathetic movement as Hamas.

1 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hy,

This is the Internet Freedom desk at Reporters without borders in Paris. We have created a blog called "RSFblog.org" which included a news site called "The World seen through Blogs." The site's aim is simple: to publish the viewpoints of bloggers from different countries on the same event. Rsfblog will showcase content produced by Internet users of very different origins and cultures.

This week the topic is : Abbas’ call for new Palestinian elections

Check this out ! forward this message !
www.rsfblog.org

Best regards,
Reporters without borders
internet2@rsf.org

7:56 AM  

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