The Jerusalem Post reports today that Hamas spokesperson Osama Hamdan has announced that Fatah must end peace talks and cooperation with Israel before Hamas will resume reconciliation talks with Fatah. In short, the only way for Palestinian political reconciliation is for Fatah to renounce those political agreements with Israel that data back to Oslo and to adopt the position of Hamas--namely the goal of the total elimination of the Jewish state. (Bolding mine)
Speaking at a rally in Beirut Sunday, Hamdan said Hamas welcomed Palestinian dialogue, but any reconciliation should be based on "a resistance program to liberate territory and regain rights."
"We say clearly that we welcome a national Palestinian dialogue but this dialogue must include those who really belong to Palestine and to the Palestinian cause," he said.
He maintained that the Israeli-Palestinian peace process had ended.
Hamas is clearly playing the "claim that you won and act like you did" game while hoping the dupes in the Arab world and the West believe you. And, to be sure, there are the Chomskys of the world who will call for the Israelis to lift the siege of Gaza, hand over billions of foreign reconstruction dollars to Hamas (none of which, I'm certain, will find their way into weapons purchases), and do everything possible so the "militants" can import longer range missiles so that the next time they can rocket Tel Aviv.
Well, if the peace process has ended, at least the Israelis don't have to worry about derailing it down the road.
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