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Internal Hamas Debate about Rethinking Policies

(Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs) Yoni Ben Menachem - The results of the Gaza war have caused Hamas serious distress, something its leadership did not foresee before launching the war with Israel. Hamas now appears to be in a process of stocktaking and reassessment in light of its situation, including the difficulties in rehabilitating Gaza, the bitter rift with the Palestinian Authority, and the deterioration in relations with Egypt. Among other things, Egypt has been constraining Hamas' ability to arm itself. To this must be added the effects of the weakening of the Muslim Brotherhood, the parent-movement of Hamas, and the strengthening of the Islamic State that, in the name of Islam, acts to establish the Islamic Caliphate - the goal to which Hamas also aspires. Dr. Khaled al-Hroub, a researcher at Cambridge University, published in Al-Ayam several ideas of Sheikh Ahmed Yusuf of Gaza, a prominent Hamas leader. Al-Hroub presented several main points from Yusuf's recommendations to the Hamas leadership: - Halt military activity for up to five years and thereby enable the recovery and rehabilitation of Gaza and the attainment of a national consensus. - Give the highest priority to the achievement of stability and security in the Sinai Peninsula so that relations with Egypt can be improved. - Hamas and Fatah will run in the coming elections on a single agreed list. - Consideration must be given to changing the Hamas Charter of 1987, which is exploited by Israel, especially the articles that are viewed as "anti-Semitic" and are exploited by Israel to attack the valid Palestinian problem. It is doubtful whether the Hamas leadership will adopt most of Yusuf's proposals. The writer, a senior Middle East analyst for the Jerusalem Center, is former director general and chief editor of the Israel Broadcasting Authority.
2014-12-01 00:00:00
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