|
Trending Topics
|
Source: https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/22396/sham-of-disarming-hamas
The Sham of "Disarming" Hamas
(Gatestone Institute) Khaled Abu Toameh - Hamas and other Palestinian terror groups have again rejected demands by President Trump's "Board of Peace" to lay down their weapons, underscoring their determination to continue their fight against Israel. They do not take seriously Trump's repeated threats that they must disarm as part of the October 2025 U.S.-brokered ceasefire and reconstruction plan for Gaza. Hamas does not recognize Israel's right to exist inside any borders. It considers all the land from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea as an Islamic endowment that belongs to Muslims to hold in trust for Allah by divine right. When Hamas talks about "resistance," it is referring to a comprehensive framework aimed at destroying Israel through a violent jihad. According to a report in the Independent Arabia newspaper, the Board of Peace recently presented Hamas with a set of guarantees including the integration of 20,000 Hamas gunmen into a new security force in Gaza that would receive salaries with international funding. The Board of Peace also apparently offered "political and legal immunity" to Hamas terrorists, guaranteeing that they will not be prosecuted by Israel in exchange for their involvement in a local governing council. If true, this means that the Board of Peace views Hamas as a legitimate and acceptable partner in the future management of Gaza. The mere act of engaging Hamas in such negotiations is beyond problematic. It risks legitimizing an Islamist terror group and entrenching its authoritarian rule in Gaza. The idea of integrating Hamas into Gaza's new security apparatus sends a message that participation in terrorism carries no consequences and that terrorists can move directly from violence into official roles. It is hard to see how pro-Hamas countries such as Qatar, Turkey, or Pakistan, all part of the Board of Peace, would seriously participate in any effort to force the Palestinian terror groups to give up their weapons.