Arafat’s Words Meant Nothing –
Neither Would Hamas’
New York — The Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) has criticized US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, for urging the Palestinian Islamist terrorist group Hamas to cooperate with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, in forming a unity government. Negotiations between Abbas and the Hamas/PA government on forming a unity government have broken down with Hamas’ refusal to declare that it recognizes Israel and forswear violence. (Associated Press, October 4). Hamas’ Charter calls for the destruction of Israel (Article 15) the murder of Jews (Article 7), describes Jews as Nazis (Article 20) and cites as fact the anti-Semitic forgery, The Protocols of the Elders of Zion (Article 32). The ZOA believes that Secretary Rice’s call on Hamas to form a government with Abbas is a mistake because, irrespective of what Hamas might say, an unreconstructed, murderous terrorist group should never be accepted as legitimate no matter what words they may temporarily utter for pragmatic reasons such as obtaining funding from the US and Europe. If Hamas leaders and members can murder, they certainly can lie.
“Hasn’t the US and the world learned anything from history, both recent and past, that the words of terrorists and killers mean nothing,” asked Morton A. Klein, President of ZOA. “Yasser Arafat proceeded as the US and the world and Israel asked and verbally stated his acceptance of Israel and renounced terrorism, yet he continued to promote terrorism and the incitement to hatred and murder that feeds it. He never put Israel on his maps, and would regularly refer to gaining ‘all’ of Palestine. Almost 70 years ago, Hitler lied to Chamberlain at Munich. Years later, Chamberlain said, ‘Everything would have been all right, if Hitler hadn’t lied to me. Do President Bush and Secretary of State Rice really believe that Hamas, would be better, more reliable, more faithful to their words, than Yasser Arafat? If not, why then is Secretary Rice basically indicating that if Hamas says some words, we will deal with it?’
If Osama Bin Laden suddenly said that he renounced terrorism, and apologized for the murder of 3,000 Americans at the World Trade Center, Pentagon, and elsewhere, should he be forgiven and accepted as a negotiating partner for the US? If Charles Manson apologized for his murders, would anyone allow their daughter to date him? If the phrase ‘a tiger doesn’t change its spots’ ever applied, it applies here. The ZOA urges the Bush Administration to disown the policy of accepting any new words by Hamas,’ and to affirm that it will have no dealings with terrorist movements.”