Hamas rejects Abbas unity pledge
September 23, 2006 | Category: Around the world, Palestine
Palestinian militant group Hamas has said it will not join a planned national unity government if recognising Israel is a condition.
It follows a speech by Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas in which he said the government would recognise Israel and renounce violence.
Hamas spokesmen said there had been no change in the position on Israel.
But Prime Minister Ismail Haniya, in a mosque sermon in Gaza City on Friday, said: “I personally will not head any government that recognises Israel.”
Ahmed Youssef, a senior adviser to Mr Haniya, said there would be no explicit recognition of Israel, but Hamas was prepared to agree to a 10-year truce with the Jewish state. - how do you agree to a truce with something you don’t recognize?
It’s about time Hamas takes a pragmatic approach and accepts the political realties and facts on the ground! At the rate they’re going, they will achieve nothing but failure and more bloodshed.
Abbas “re-affirmed the historic statements of mutual recognition made by then Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1993.”
“These two letters contain a reciprocal recognition between the PLO [Palestine Liberation Organisation] and Israel, reject violence and call for negotiations to reach a permanent settlement with the creation of an independent Palestinian state next to Israel.”
“I come to you bearing the wounds of a people who seek to live a normal life… not be victims of the cruelty of history. I simply want tomorrow to be better than today, I want Palestine to be independent and sovereign… Do not let the olive branch fall from my hand ” -Mahmoud Abbas.
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Shaden
on September 23rd, 2006At first I thought that Hamas made a huge mistake by rejecting the unity pledge, but after hearing about the 10 year truce with “israel”, I think it’s a good idea!
Yes you can have a truce without recognizing Israel as a state, it doesn’t mean Israel does not exist but rather that we do not agree to the grounds on which it’s existence is based. Why and how to recognize Israel if it does not recognize Hamas to start with?? why do we have to make the first step always even though we know that no further steps will be taken on their behalf?
A truce will stop the bloodshed (supposedly) and will give Israel another chance to recognize Hamas as democratically elected government and start the so called peace negotiations with them.
Hamzeh N.
on September 24th, 2006It is often argued that recognizing Israel as a Jewish state compromises the right of return of Palestinian refugees into Israel.
Since the right of return is always pushed onto the final status agreements, ie. resolving it is never a precondition of peaceful negotiations, I believe recognizing the Jewish identity of the Israeli state should also be pushed to the final status agreements and coupled with the issue of the right of return.
Having said that, Hamas could find a compromise in recognizing the Israeli people’s right to self government in the form of a state, while at the same time asking the other side to equally guarantee that this recognition will not be considered by any means necessary a recognition of the Jewish identity and/or that it cannot be used in the future to bind the Palestinian side to compromising the right of return of Palestinian refugees into Israel. At the same time, Hamas could renounce violence while reserving the right of self defense against illegal occupation.
Iman
on September 25th, 2006Being in the political spectrum ultimately means recognizing the state of israel … if Hamas’ intention is to never do so, then they should’ve remained a resistance group!
Shaden
on September 25th, 2006Iman, says who?!