Requested Hamas Pledges As Worthless As Arafat’s Pledges

The Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) has called upon President Barack Obama to remain faithful to his pledge before and since being elected President not to deal with the Nazi-like, anti-American Hamas, the Palestinian Arab terrorist group dedicated in its Charter to the destruction of Israel (Article 15) and the murder of Jews (Article 7). Under current U.S. policy, Hamas must renounce terrorism, abide by past signed Israeli-Palestinian agreements and recognize Israel. (These are the same conditions expected of Fatah, which has fulfilled none of them but pays lip service – in English at least – to each). Several Obama advisers, official and unofficial, including former national security advisers Zbigniew Brzezinski and Brent Scowcroft, former Republican senator Chuck Hagel and economic adviser Paul Volcker, wrote to President Obama in the first days of his Administration to urge U.S. talks with Hamas.

The signatories urged President Obama to break with past U.S. policy and open talks with Hamas with a view to have it form a unity government with Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority (PA) government headed by Mahmoud Abbas. They are expected to meet with President Obama soon at the White House to make their case. Of the signatories, Scowcroft has been quoted as saying, “I see no reason not to talk to Hamas.” (Alex Spillius, ‘Barack Obama adviser urges talks with Hamas,’ Telegraph [London], March 15, 2009).

In addition to its genocidal intentions against Jews, Hamas terrorists have murdered over 500 Israelis in eight years of suicide bombings, road-side bombs, sniping and drive-by shootings. Hamas has also made vociferously hateful anti-American, anti-Western statements:

·        Hamas spokesman Dr. Abd Al-Aziz Al-Rantisi: “I think that the West’s arrogance will lead it to its sure end if it is determined to act with aggression and terror against the Islamic nation, and that its first defeat will be in Iraq” (‘Hamas Spokesman: Iraq Must Establish a Suicide Army,’ Middle East Media Research Institute, January 8, 2003).

·        Hamas Leader Khaled Masha’al: “America will be defeated in Iraq. Wherever the [Islamic] nation is targeted, its enemies will be defeated, Allah willing … I say to the [European countries]: Hurry up and apologize to our nation, because if you do not, you will regret it. This is because our nation is progressing and is victorious. Do not leave a black mark in the collective memory of the nation, because our nation will not forgive you” (‘“Hamas Leader Khaled Mash’al at a Damascus Mosque: The Nation of Islam Will Sit at the Throne of the World and the West Will Be Full of Remorse – When It’s Too Late,”’ Middle East Media Research Institute, February 7, 2006).

·        Hamas statement on death of Al-Qaeda’s Abbas Musab al Zarqawi: a “brother fighter… who was martyred at the hands of the savage crusade campaign which targets the Arab homeland, starting in Iraq.” (‘Who’s sad about Zarqawi?,’ Jerusalem Post, June 8, 2006); Hamas ‘Foreign Minister’ Mahmoud Zahar: “We are dead sure that assassination of any of the people (like al-Zarqawi) who are resisting will not … end the resistance.” (‘Zahar: Zarqawi’s death will not end resistance,’ Jerusalem Post, June 8, 2006).

·        Abu Abdullah, a leader of Hamas’’ Izzedine al-Qassam Martyrs Brigades: “Asked which U.S. targets Hamas would hit, Abu Abdullah replied, ‘Do you think that I can give you an answer to this question? I can say that the Middle East is full of American targets and the world has had the occasion to learn what are the weapons of the anti-American forces in the region.’” (‘Hamas threatens attacks on U.S. Terrorist warns ‘Middle East is full of American targets,’ World Net Daily, December 22, 2006).

·        Hamas’ Ahmed Bahar, Speaker of the PA legislature: “Allah, take hold of the Americans and their allies… Allah, count them and kill them to the last one and don’t leave even one.” (‘PA Leader calls for killing all Jews and Americans,’ Palestinian Media Watch, April 20, 2007).

ZOA National President Morton A. Klein said, “The advice being offered to President Obama by several advisers, many of them with a long record of hostility to Israel, that he should deal with Hamas, is based on the extraordinarily naïve or malign idea that a bloodthirsty group of terrorists can become responsible and acceptable peace partners provided that they utter the right words on a few occasions when the cameras are rolling.

“Do these Obama advisers not recall that we went through the same charade with Yasser Arafat years ago? Then we were asking of Arafat, as we are asking Hamas now, to utter the right words about renouncing terror, accepting Israel and renouncing incitement to hatred and murder in order to bestow recognition and legitimacy on him. Arafat did renounce terrorism, accept Israel’s right to exist and even signed an agreement to that effect, yet he immediately continued terrorism, repeatedly called for Israel’s destruction and continued incitement.

“So look where this policy of demanding words got us. Further back in history, in 1938, we have another example where words meant nothing. We granted Hitler negotiations and huge concessions when he simply uttered phony words of peace that in the end consumed Czechoslovakia – and we ended up with a world war and the Holocaust.

“In short, getting career haters and terrorists to say certain words, or even sign certain agreements, is not a policy because, when they do, it means nothing. Therefore, even if Hamas uttered the few words that we’re asking of them, the result would be the same as it was when we dealt with Arafat. Words and signatures mean nothing when they come from murderers. Surely if such people are capable of murdering they are capable of lying. We are really asking Hamas to lie to us so we can give them recognition and financial aid.

“From where comes this idea that the most despicable terrorists can be rehabilitated by uttering mere words? Current U.S. conditions for talks with Hamas are already too elastic and thus meaningless – the rights words about renouncing terror, accepting past agreements and recognizing Israel would mean nothing even if Hamas was prepared to claim it was doing these things – which it doesn’t.

“If a serial murder like Charles Manson were to claim he had repented of his unspeakable crimes, would we suddenly drop all objections about, and feel comfortable with, our daughters dating him? If the Ku Klux Klan started issuing statements that it renounced hatred of African-Americans, would we start appointing their leaders to the boards of civil rights commissions? Of course not. The idea is laughable.

“If President Obama follows this advice, it will only result in a victory for Islamist terrorism, including the most murderous Palestinian elements, and help prolong the conflict. U.S. policy should have the over-arching goal of bringing the Palestinians to see their non-acceptance and murderous hostility towards Israel as wrong and counter-productive, not something that may be indulged in while earning a seat at the negotiating table.

“By helping Palestinians put off the day when they genuinely reform their society to purge it of jihadist and violent, rejectionist elements, we would be worsening and prolonging the conflict, not managing or ending it.

“This wrong-headed and dangerous advice to engage Hamas would, if adopted, result in a weakening of European governmental demands that Hamas accept Israel, non-violence and implementation of past signed agreements. Seeing all this, why would Palestinian terror groups committed to Israel’s destruction moderate or give up terror if they can simply wait out international pressure and wait for the U.S. to fold?

“We urge President Obama to repudiate the notion of dealing with Hamas, which would only harm all the President’s objectives in the Middle East – to foster political moderation in the Middle East, to fight and oppose terror groups and to create the conditions for a peace settlement.”