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The Hamas-Fatah Reconciliation Agreement: Too Early to Judge
(Washington Institute for Near East Policy) Ehud Yaari and Neri Zilber - The April 23 Fatah-Hamas reconciliation deal severely complicates efforts to extend Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations past their April 29 deadline. The greatest stumbling blocks remain Hamas' continued embrace of armed resistance against Israel and its rejection of a negotiated two-state resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Certain Hamas leaders have stated publicly that they remain steadfast in their opposition to any comprehensive peace agreement and refusal to recognize Israel. A government that includes Hamas, a designated terrorist organization, could risk a cutoff in international donor aid and Israeli transfers of customs revenues.