by Daniel Siryoti
As the campaign for a "March of Return" went on and the extent of Iran's involvement in Gaza became clear, Palestinians began to distance themselves from the Hamas-organized protests on the border.
Hamas has failed. Of this, there can be no
doubt. For nine weeks, the organization that rules the Gaza Strip has
enabled a "March of Return" on the border with Israel, setting new goals
for hundreds of thousands of Gazans to attend the weekly procession.
But from Land Day to Nakba Day and throughout the month of Ramadan to
the planned march on Naksa Day, which was postponed in favor of Quds
Day, Hamas has demonstrated to just what extent it lacks any strategic
political plan.
It seems that even when Hamas succeeds in
bringing the issue of Gaza to the world's attention, the organization's
leaders make it clear not only to the moderate Arab states that once
supported them but to the Gazans themselves that they prefer money and
weapons to any improvement in the humanitarian situation there.
Hamas has only itself to blame. The
terrorist organization is undergoing a process of "Iranization," to the
chagrin of Sunni Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the Persian Gulf states. Those
countries still support the Palestinian terror group in principle, but
their diplomatic policies are evidence they are distancing themselves
farther and farther from the group the more Hamas is sucked into the
Iranian honey trap.
Hamas will not admit their "March of
Return" has been a failure, and despite the declarations from the
organization's political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas leader in
Gaza Yahya Sinwar and others of Gazans "breaking the siege," senior
officials in Gaza agree the organization's leadership needs to stop and
set a new course.
The attempt by Hamas' current leadership to
use funding from Iran to create a Palestinian version of Hezbollah
first in Gaza and later the West Bank is completely unacceptable not
only to the leaders of moderate Sunni Arab states who fear Iranian
hegemony and Tehran's attempts to establish itself across the Middle
East, and as a result have increased cooperation with Israel but to a
majority of the Sunni Arab and Palestinian public. In the eyes of
certain members of the Arab public and Palestinians in Gaza and the West
Bank, Sunni Hamas' decision to join Shiite Iran and Hezbollah is
nothing short of blasphemous.
Does the Hamas leadership understand the
consequences of their actions? Not necessarily. Hamas' political bureau
no longer has the internal political clout it did when Khaled Mashaal
headed the organization.
Senior Hamas officials now admit that
Mashaal's successor Haniyeh is having difficulty restoring the influence
once wielded by his predecessor. This is due in large part to the fact
he is operating from within Gaza and not from abroad as Mashaal did and
the visible dominance of his second-in-command Saleh Arouri, who
operates out of Lebanon and Hamas leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar, who both
embrace Iran's influence.
Many in Hamas admit the failure of the
"March of Return" is directly related to Iran's sway. As the campaign
went on, and the extent of Iranian involvement in Gaza became clear, the
Palestinian public began to distance itself from Hamas' attempts to
enlist the masses in the mass protests and support among Arab states
declined. For Haniyeh, Arouri and Sinwar, this failure should be a
warning sign.
Daniel Siryoti
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/opinions/a-resounding-failure/
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