by Dr. Shaul Bartal
The technocratic government that
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas declared this week represents the
pinnacle of reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas. This government includes,
among others, card-carrying Hamas "professionals" from the Gaza Strip. Hamas
leaders announced that the establishment of the government does not change in
the least its ideological commitment to the destruction of Israel and continuing
to resist as spelled out in its platform of August 18, 1988. Hamas leader Ismail
Haniyeh said this specifically at a ceremony in Rafah last Saturday. Haniyeh and
his ilk praised the Hamas government, which has controlled Gaza for the past
eight years and led the Palestinian people in resisting the "Zionist
occupation."
The new prime minister, Professor Rami
Hamdallah, president of An-Najah National University in Nablus, has already
taken up the reins at the Palestinian Authority. Riyad al-Maliki will remain
minister of foreign affairs in the unity government. Senior Hamas official Dr.
Mahmoud al-Zahar said in an interview to the Hamas newspaper Al Risalah that
both sides had agreed upon all the ministers in the new government -- the
"technocrats." Moderate people whose national views clashed with those of Hamas
were not appointed. Maliki, for example, is keeping his post as foreign minister
only at the insistence of Abbas. Religious Affairs Minister Mahmoud al-Habash
was fired, and his post was assigned to someone Hamas preferred.
What will be the future of resistance to
Israel? This question must be examined from three main angles: security
coordination between Israel and the PA; Hamas and the PA continuing to operate
separate military apparatuses; and the prisoner issue. Armed Hamas members will
continue to protect the Gaza Strip and keep hold of their weapons. Hamas
spokesmen have said so. This means that acts of resistance, including missile
attacks on Ashkelon and the surrounding area, will persist regardless of the
unity government in Ramallah. Hamas military officials will be integrated into
the PA's security setup while continuing their activity in the Gaza Strip --
without, of course, coordinating with Israel and in violation of agreements
between Israel and the PA. Will the Palestinian unity government be responsible
for missile fire from inside Gaza? The answer in no, because Hamas -- and
especially the rest of organizations there -- maintain the right to oppose
Israel, a right that they did not give up when the deal for the unity government
was signed.
And what about the West Bank? At this stage,
coordination on security is still in place, but the reconciliation with Hamas is
felt on the ground. Hamas activists can once again fly their flag at rallies and
marches throughout the West Bank. Social organizations that were shut down
because of their support for Hamas are starting up again. A glimpse of the new
era in which Hamas activity is once again legal was seen at the funeral of
brothers Imad and Adel Awadallah on April 30, not far from the Muqataa
(Palestinian Authority headquarters) in Ramallah. An atmosphere like this will
affect coordination with Israel on security, and cause it to deteriorate
gradually.
As far as the prisoner issue goes, the
Palestinian Authority is still paying the salaries of every Palestinian
imprisoned in Israel. Hamas and the Islamic Jihad have encountered many
difficulties in transferring money to their members who are in prison in Israel.
Wanting to avoid having this volatile issue handled by a Fatah or Hamas
minister, a decision was taken to establish an independent prisoners' committee
in the Palestine Liberation Organization that would coordinate the matter of
prisoners from all the Palestinian groups. Some senior Hamas members object to
this decision and are trying to change it. The fear among Hamas supporters is
that whoever is in charge of the prisoners issue will gather great political
power because of the Palestinian public's sensitivity to the matter. Abbas,
therefore, is insisting that the question be dropped from the unity government's
agenda and handled independently in the PLO. His move was seen as cunning and
manipulative, removing the sting from the prisoner problem.
Hamas came to the unity government out of
distress at the loss of support from the Muslim Brotherhood regime in Egypt and
President-elect Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi's harsh steps to curb the group. The group
sought a Hezbollah-style solution and integrated itself into an existing
political structure. The organization has not laid down its arms or changed its
ideology, but rather is taking part in government and influencing the
Palestinian street. To paraphrase Genesis 6:11, the PLO has been "filled with
'hamas' [Hebrew for 'violence']."
Dr. Shaul Bartal
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=8619
Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.
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