Hamas wins Parliamentary Elections…
and yet 'Israel and the United States have said they would not deal with a government led by Hamas'. So much for democracy!
We want the Palestinians to elect their representatives! The Palestinians must engage in democracy! But only with people we enjoy dealing with!
The Palestinians have had to negotiate with Likud for many years in between various Labour governments despite the 1996 Likud Party Platform stating quite clearly:
The Jordan River shall be the eastern border of the State of Israel, south of Lake Kinneret. This will be the permanent border between the State of Israel and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.
i.e. There will never be a Palestinian state incorporating the West Bank. On top of that, the various Likud PMs have been responsible not just for hundreds but for tens of thousands of Palestinian deaths. Admittedly deaths not caused by such crude methods as suicide bombings, but by Merkavas, Phosphorus bombs, helicopters, napalm etc.
I don't understand why the US and Israel will refuse to deal with Hamas whilst simultaneously expecting any Palestinian to deal with them.
26 Jan 2006 13:02
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Mathew Mannion
The fact that their leader went to a rally and stood up and predicted the "Death of Israel" in x years might have something to do with it.
26 Jan 2006, 13:08
Suicide bombers? A publically–stated desire to wipe Israel of the face of the earth? The fact that it would be a step backwards after Sharon's concessions?
26 Jan 2006, 13:11
Let's say he did. He's now a democratically–elected leader, just as Sharon was. There is absolutely no military risk to Israel of any sort. Would it not be better to engage this leader instead of attempting to pervert Palestinian democracy?
Why would it be a backwards step? More importantly, what concessions did Sharon make? Removing a couple of thousand illegal settlers from Gaza when there are hundreds of thousands in the West Bank is no more a concession than stealing someone's car but returning a camera that was in the boot.
What is clear is that if a two–state solution is to go forward there will need to be 5 fundamentals:
1) A return to the 1967 borders.
2) The removal of all illegal settlers or their naturalisation as Palestinian citizens.
3) Jerusalem either as a shared capital, with shared sovereignty or as an international zone with joint religious maintanence.
4) Palestinian sovereignty over its ports, air, land and its internal water supplies.
5) Full Palestinian access to its own borders with Egypt and Jordan.
These are the five fundamentals required for peace.
Arguing that they don't want to deal with a democratically–elected Palestinian leader whilst continuing to build their wall on Palestinian land, burning Palestinian olive groves, inflicting curfews and school/hospital closures, because the leader doesn't recognise Israel's right to exist is somewhat ironic. I've never seen Israel's supporters say that Israel should recognise Palestine's right to exist as it legally ought to.
26 Jan 2006, 13:26
Mathew Mannion
Actually, Israel assassinated him a couple of years ago. Different bloke now, I assume.
I don't agree
26 Jan 2006, 13:47
If there's anyone who can deliver peace on the Palestinian side it's Hamas for the simple reason that any Palestinian government not including Hamas would have the impossible task of trying to control them.
That said I don't hold much hope for it happening, from either side.
27 Jan 2006, 13:00
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