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Aiding Friends and Foes in Palestine
(Foreign Affairs) Douglas N. Greenburg and Derek D. Smith - The reconciliation agreement between Fatah and Hamas raises a number of difficult issues for the U.S., including whether Washington can lawfully continue to provide aid to the Palestinian Authority if it includes Hamas as an equal partner. U.S. law has long prohibited citizens from providing support to or doing business with Hamas, with violations punishable by up to 15 years in prison, or life in prison if the support results in the death of any person. The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) also enforces sanctions against Hamas and its affiliates, forbidding U.S. persons from engaging in any transactions with designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs), and further requiring that U.S. financial institutions block any transactions involving assets of FTOs. Should the Obama administration want to continue funding a Hamas-affiliated PA, current law gives him little leeway to do so. Douglas N. Greenburg served as a staff member of the September 11 Commission. Derek D. Smith is the author of Deterring America: Rogue States and the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction.