- Jul 13, 2005
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Seems to mme that by going the UN route the Palestinians and Hamas can have their cake and eat it too...or so they believe they can.....
Some very interesting responses by the Hamas Leader....
http://news.yahoo.com/hamas-leader-...Q1M2M5Y2UzBHBzdGNhdAMEcHQDc3RvcnlwYWdl;_ylv=3
Hamas leader vows never to recognize Israel
Reuters 11 hrs agoGAZA (Reuters) - Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal, making his first ever visit to the Gaza Strip, vowed on Saturday never to recognize Israel and said his Islamist group would never abandon its claim to all Israeli territory.
"Palestine is ours from the river to the sea and from the south to the north. There will be no concession on an inch of the land," he told a sea of supporters at an open-air rally, the highlight of his three-day stay in Gaza.
"We will never recognize the legitimacy of the Israeli occupation and therefore there is no legitimacy for Israel, no matter how long it will take."
In an uncompromising speech, Meshaal also vowed to free Palestinian prisoners held in Israel, indicating Islamist militants would try to kidnap Israeli soldiers to use as a bargaining chip.
Israel last year released 1,027 Palestinians from its jails in return for the liberation of Gilad Shalit, a conscript soldier who was seized by Palestinian guerrillas in 2006 and hidden for more than five years in Gaza.
Thousands of Palestinian detainees remain in Israel. The Jewish state says many of them are terrorists. Hamas calls them freedom fighters.
"We will not rest until we liberate the prisoners. The way we freed some of the prisoners in the past is the way we will use to free the remaining prisoners," Meshaal said to cheers from the huge crowd that had flocked to see him.
Meshaal was born in the nearby West Bank but has lived most of his life in exile. He entered Gaza 24 hours ago to attend Saturday's rally which marks the 25th anniversary of the founding of Hamas.
http://news.yahoo.com/hamass-confid...Nwb2xpdGljc3x3b3JsZARwdANzdG9yeXBhZ2U-;_ylv=3
Exiled Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal is walking on Palestinian territory for the first time in 45 years. He's in town to celebrate his partys 25th anniversary and the end of a week-long conflagration with Israel last month.
But his visit could also signal growing confidence within the Islamist party which Israel, the United States, and the European Union consider a terrorist organization over its position in the tumultuous Middle East.
Mr. Meshaal, who left the West Bank as a boy in 1967 and had not visited Gaza before today, has led Hamas for over 15 years, primarily from the party's offices in Damascus, Syria. But he was in Egypt late last month for negotiations of the cease-fire that ended the eight-day conflict with Israel. Some 170 Palestinians and six Israelis were killed in the violence, the Telegraph reports, the worst fighting in four years. The New York Times reports that Hamas' negotiation of a cease-fire with Israel through the agency of the Egyptians may represent an important step toward becoming a more recognized international player and representative of at least a portion of the Palestinian people.
Think you know about terrorism? Take our quiz.
Meshaal has since spoken of the possibility of reaching out to other political factions within the Palestinian territory, including the Fatah party, which was pushed out of Gaza by Hamas in 2007. Al Jazeera reports Hamas invited Fatah officials to a celebration rally in Gaza tomorrow, part of Meshaals whirlwind trip.
"There is a new mood that allows us to achieve reconciliation," Meshaal told Al Jazeera.
According to the Times, The Fatah movement controls the West Bank, which Israel still occupies, and the rivalry between the two groups is the defining principle of Palestinian politics, despite continuing efforts by Egypt to bring about a reconciliation.
The most recent violence between Israel and Palestine started on Nov. 14 with an exchange of rockets and airstrikes. Since then, the Palestinian Authority gained United Nations recognition as a non-member observer state (something that Meshaal thanked Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas for, reports the BBC), and Israel announced the expansion of settlement construction on the West Bank.
Israel says its airstrikes did substantial damage to Hamas in November, killing Ahmed al-Jaabari, its military chief, and diminishing its supply of weapons, reports the Telegraph. But according to The Associated Press, Hamas leaders declared victory in Gaza after the truce was brokered in November. While Israel said it inflicted heavy damage on the militants, Gaza's Hamas rulers claimed that Israel's decision not to send ground troops into the territory, as it had four years ago, was a sign of a new Hamas deterrent power.
A spokesman for Israels foreign ministry told Bloomberg today that it doesnt matter who they are, Hamas still stands for violence, bloodshed, extremism and racism.
But the November Israeli-Palestinian face-off highlighted a change in the regional attitude toward Hamas, one that The Christian Science Monitors Egypt correspondent writes may be attributed to the aftermath of last years Arab uprisings. Political parties such as Hamas now have more support from Arab leaders, and the role Egypts Mohamed Morsi, the Turkish prime minister, Qatari emir, and Hamas exiled Meshaal played in brokering the cease-fire last month is one example of this.
n the post-Arab spring Middle East, the region looks much different, and Hamas has found a new swell of support as it faces Israel. Mr. Mubarak, ousted in a popular uprising in 2011, has been replaced by an elected president from the Muslim Brotherhood. Instead of a mostly sealed Gaza-Egypt border, it has become difficult to keep track of all the solidarity trips made to Gaza by Arab officials. ...
The uprisings that displaced pro-Western autocrats who toed the US line on Israel have brought to power Islamist governments more friendly to Hamas, as well as more sensitive to public opinion typically supportive of the Palestinian cause. This has reshaped the regional dynamics, leaving Israel increasingly isolated. These new governments, along with Turkey and Qatar, have formed a vocal block of opposition to Israel's assault on Gaza.
This is a significant change in the Arab reaction, says Khalil Al Anani, a scholar at Durham University in Britain. The new Arab nations ready to take a stronger stance against Israel could change Israels calculations in favor of more restraint.
It shows that Gaza is not alone. This will put pressure on Israel, and they [Arab states] can move further if they want, by lobbying internationally and putting a spotlight on Israel and its lack of interest in peace," he says.
The visit of Mashaal to Gaza is one of the fruits of the victory Hamas has achieved during the eight-day war on Gaza, Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said, according to Bloomberg. Gaza is freed now and will receive whoever visitors it wants.
Hamas was founded Dec. 14, 1987, after the first Palestinian uprising against Israeli occupation. This weekends celebrations were moved up to coincide with the first intifada, or uprising, against Israel, reports the Times.
According to the BBC, Under its charter, Hamas is committed to the destruction of Israel. But the group has also offered a 10-year truce in return for a complete Israeli withdrawal from territories it occupied in 1967.
Meshaal, who reportedly kissed the ground upon entering Gaza from Egypt, is expected to speak at tomorrows rally. He also plans to visit the homes of fallen Hamas members including Mr. Jabari and Hamas spiritual leader Sheik Ahmed Yassin.
Some very interesting responses by the Hamas Leader....
http://news.yahoo.com/hamas-leader-...Q1M2M5Y2UzBHBzdGNhdAMEcHQDc3RvcnlwYWdl;_ylv=3
Hamas leader vows never to recognize Israel
Reuters 11 hrs agoGAZA (Reuters) - Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal, making his first ever visit to the Gaza Strip, vowed on Saturday never to recognize Israel and said his Islamist group would never abandon its claim to all Israeli territory.
"Palestine is ours from the river to the sea and from the south to the north. There will be no concession on an inch of the land," he told a sea of supporters at an open-air rally, the highlight of his three-day stay in Gaza.
"We will never recognize the legitimacy of the Israeli occupation and therefore there is no legitimacy for Israel, no matter how long it will take."
In an uncompromising speech, Meshaal also vowed to free Palestinian prisoners held in Israel, indicating Islamist militants would try to kidnap Israeli soldiers to use as a bargaining chip.
Israel last year released 1,027 Palestinians from its jails in return for the liberation of Gilad Shalit, a conscript soldier who was seized by Palestinian guerrillas in 2006 and hidden for more than five years in Gaza.
Thousands of Palestinian detainees remain in Israel. The Jewish state says many of them are terrorists. Hamas calls them freedom fighters.
"We will not rest until we liberate the prisoners. The way we freed some of the prisoners in the past is the way we will use to free the remaining prisoners," Meshaal said to cheers from the huge crowd that had flocked to see him.
Meshaal was born in the nearby West Bank but has lived most of his life in exile. He entered Gaza 24 hours ago to attend Saturday's rally which marks the 25th anniversary of the founding of Hamas.
http://news.yahoo.com/hamass-confid...Nwb2xpdGljc3x3b3JsZARwdANzdG9yeXBhZ2U-;_ylv=3
Exiled Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal is walking on Palestinian territory for the first time in 45 years. He's in town to celebrate his partys 25th anniversary and the end of a week-long conflagration with Israel last month.
But his visit could also signal growing confidence within the Islamist party which Israel, the United States, and the European Union consider a terrorist organization over its position in the tumultuous Middle East.
Mr. Meshaal, who left the West Bank as a boy in 1967 and had not visited Gaza before today, has led Hamas for over 15 years, primarily from the party's offices in Damascus, Syria. But he was in Egypt late last month for negotiations of the cease-fire that ended the eight-day conflict with Israel. Some 170 Palestinians and six Israelis were killed in the violence, the Telegraph reports, the worst fighting in four years. The New York Times reports that Hamas' negotiation of a cease-fire with Israel through the agency of the Egyptians may represent an important step toward becoming a more recognized international player and representative of at least a portion of the Palestinian people.
Think you know about terrorism? Take our quiz.
Meshaal has since spoken of the possibility of reaching out to other political factions within the Palestinian territory, including the Fatah party, which was pushed out of Gaza by Hamas in 2007. Al Jazeera reports Hamas invited Fatah officials to a celebration rally in Gaza tomorrow, part of Meshaals whirlwind trip.
"There is a new mood that allows us to achieve reconciliation," Meshaal told Al Jazeera.
According to the Times, The Fatah movement controls the West Bank, which Israel still occupies, and the rivalry between the two groups is the defining principle of Palestinian politics, despite continuing efforts by Egypt to bring about a reconciliation.
The most recent violence between Israel and Palestine started on Nov. 14 with an exchange of rockets and airstrikes. Since then, the Palestinian Authority gained United Nations recognition as a non-member observer state (something that Meshaal thanked Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas for, reports the BBC), and Israel announced the expansion of settlement construction on the West Bank.
Israel says its airstrikes did substantial damage to Hamas in November, killing Ahmed al-Jaabari, its military chief, and diminishing its supply of weapons, reports the Telegraph. But according to The Associated Press, Hamas leaders declared victory in Gaza after the truce was brokered in November. While Israel said it inflicted heavy damage on the militants, Gaza's Hamas rulers claimed that Israel's decision not to send ground troops into the territory, as it had four years ago, was a sign of a new Hamas deterrent power.
A spokesman for Israels foreign ministry told Bloomberg today that it doesnt matter who they are, Hamas still stands for violence, bloodshed, extremism and racism.
But the November Israeli-Palestinian face-off highlighted a change in the regional attitude toward Hamas, one that The Christian Science Monitors Egypt correspondent writes may be attributed to the aftermath of last years Arab uprisings. Political parties such as Hamas now have more support from Arab leaders, and the role Egypts Mohamed Morsi, the Turkish prime minister, Qatari emir, and Hamas exiled Meshaal played in brokering the cease-fire last month is one example of this.
n the post-Arab spring Middle East, the region looks much different, and Hamas has found a new swell of support as it faces Israel. Mr. Mubarak, ousted in a popular uprising in 2011, has been replaced by an elected president from the Muslim Brotherhood. Instead of a mostly sealed Gaza-Egypt border, it has become difficult to keep track of all the solidarity trips made to Gaza by Arab officials. ...
The uprisings that displaced pro-Western autocrats who toed the US line on Israel have brought to power Islamist governments more friendly to Hamas, as well as more sensitive to public opinion typically supportive of the Palestinian cause. This has reshaped the regional dynamics, leaving Israel increasingly isolated. These new governments, along with Turkey and Qatar, have formed a vocal block of opposition to Israel's assault on Gaza.
This is a significant change in the Arab reaction, says Khalil Al Anani, a scholar at Durham University in Britain. The new Arab nations ready to take a stronger stance against Israel could change Israels calculations in favor of more restraint.
It shows that Gaza is not alone. This will put pressure on Israel, and they [Arab states] can move further if they want, by lobbying internationally and putting a spotlight on Israel and its lack of interest in peace," he says.
The visit of Mashaal to Gaza is one of the fruits of the victory Hamas has achieved during the eight-day war on Gaza, Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said, according to Bloomberg. Gaza is freed now and will receive whoever visitors it wants.
Hamas was founded Dec. 14, 1987, after the first Palestinian uprising against Israeli occupation. This weekends celebrations were moved up to coincide with the first intifada, or uprising, against Israel, reports the Times.
According to the BBC, Under its charter, Hamas is committed to the destruction of Israel. But the group has also offered a 10-year truce in return for a complete Israeli withdrawal from territories it occupied in 1967.
Meshaal, who reportedly kissed the ground upon entering Gaza from Egypt, is expected to speak at tomorrows rally. He also plans to visit the homes of fallen Hamas members including Mr. Jabari and Hamas spiritual leader Sheik Ahmed Yassin.
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