GAZA STRIP: Hamas leadership says it will remain in Syria

Hamas officials on Saturday denied reports that its top leaders are planning to move from Syria and relocate to Qatar or another Arab country.

“The leadership will remain there," said Hamas spokesman Ismail Radwan. "As far as I know, we were not told to move to any other country.”

The London-based Alhayat newspaper reported Saturday that the Syrian government demanded Hamas leaders, who have been based in Damascus for about a decade, leave. The newspaper said that Qatar had agreed to receive the movement’s politburo leader, Khaled Mashaal.

According to the report, the Syrian decision came out of anger because of Hamas' neutral stance on the current turmoil in Syria.

Hamas receives political, financial and military support from Syria, which has assisted the militant Islamist group since the early 1990s.

As Syrian President Bashar Assad faces mounting unrest, many predict it is only a matter of time before  Hamas leaders will need to find an alternate base. Some say Hamas might seek to move to Egypt, where the new interim government has been warming ties with Hamas and recently brokered a tentative reconciliation agreement between Hamas and its rival Palestinian faction Fatah.

On Wednesday, the Egyptian intelligence agency announced that its efforts succeeded in reuniting the battling Fatah and Hamas parties, saying a historic reconciliation deal will be signed in Cairo on Thursday.

Political analyst Mukhaimer Abu Sada in Gaza City ruled out the possibility of top Hamas leaders moving to the Gaza Strip, saying Israel might attempt to assassinate them if they returned to the territory.

Meanwhile, Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh, who is based in the Gaza Strip, said his government will resign as soon as the unity deal is signed in Cairo. But he also urged the Palestine Liberation Organization, which is responsible for peace negotiations with Israel, to renounce recognition of the
Jewish state.

-- Ahmed Aldabba in Gaza City

Comments

[Links of London]

Meanwhile, Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh, who is based in the Gaza Strip, said his government will resign as soon as the unity deal is signed in Cairo. But he also urged the Palestine Liberation Organization, which is responsible for peace negotiations with Israel, to renounce recognition of the
Jewish state.

[sam]

how any country/the united nations.can even think of putting their voices behind the so called palestinian/hamas/fatah/linking of arms regime after their comments relating to bin laden and their love and praise of him would be a crime in its-self its time for the world to wake up remove the voice terrorist hamas has given them-selves/allowed by the west, fatah has done its-self no favours and has again shown its true colours.
birds of a feather flock together.
thank you.

[Jehudah Ben-Israel]

Just announced in the Arabic media: Hamas condemns the killing of Ossama Bin-Laden, the head of al-Qaeda.

Sadly, this Islamist organizaiton is now part of a coalition with the "moderate" Fatah of Mahmoud Abbas...!!

I wonder, what else need be said about the Hamas-Fatah coalition that hasn't been said with this announcement...??

[atrayu]

RAMALLAH/GAZA - Hamas on Monday condemned the killing by US forces of Osama bin Laden and mourned him as an "Arab holy warrior."

Hamas is crying too bad!

Thank you the US military! Job well done!

[sam]

HAMAS IS A LEGITIMATE POPULAR MOVEMENT.
followed by terrorists/funded by terrorists,who import not only drugs but children to be used in the sex industry,followed by bomb toting rapests of females as young as 6years of age,and followed by those who have no choice of their own how any body can class these murders as changed heroes of the people must have purchased some of their drugs the money from the sales of which goes towards their terror efforts not only against israel and the usa but countries worldwide.
if you back these people or speak on their behalf you are either ready for medical treatment or a follower of terrorists acts your-self.
thank you.

[michael]

OH PLEASE no one wants these INSANIACS

[Paul Guay]

Hamas has changed over the years, and sees the time is ripe for freedom...finally.
(or it at least appears this way). This is the best chance for a two state solution...to ride the freedom wave across the region. For that, the Palestinians must be whole.

The pressure is all on Israel now. Let us see how much they, (the right), believe that Palestine should exist.

[Colm O' Toole]

Egypt would be a better fit than Qatar which would be geographically isolated from Palestine. Hamas always had problems in Syria anyway, being Sunni Muslims hosted by a Shiite government being the main problem.

Anyway no lack of states that would take Hamas leadership in: Qatar obviously seeks to be everyones friend in the region with ties to Iran and the US and ties to Israel and Hamas. It tries to position itself as the vital middleman in the region.

Lebanon would also be another option for Hamas. Since the Israeli attack in 2006 would be plenty of sympathy and Hezbollah could be relied upon to offer them protection. Egypt would certainly be a choice especially since it borders the Gaza Strip and has recently reopened the Rafah Crossing and negotiated this Unity deal.

I sigh at some of these comments bringing up the false label of terrorism that gets thrown around. Hamas is a legitimate popular movement and if you judge terrorism by how many civilians are killed than Israel is a thousand times more terroristic than Hamas.

[atrayu]

Just what Syria does not need..more terrorism

[Jehudah Ben-Israel]

Be it in Syria or elsewhere, when Hamas, as required by the entire international community, meets the three simple demands placed in front of it, I am sure, Israel also will deal with this organization across the negotiating table, but not before.

The UN, US, EU and Russia demanded of Hamas to:

1) Accept Israel right to exist

2) Cease all acts of terror and violence against Israel and its citizens, and all preparations for such acts

3) Adhere to agreements with Israel already singed

And, since the entire international community has rejected of Hamas prior to it adhering to these three simple points, yet the PLO's PA does not, the move says a lot not only about Hamas, but also about the "moderate" PLO, its Palestinian Authority and the various components of the two, e.g. Fatah...

We, Jews, have taken a note of the people with whom we deal and the ones with which our nation-state, the nation-state of the Jewish people, Israel, has been hoping to achieve an accommodation of peaceful coexistence.

Let us hope the rest of the world is not cynical, and it too will take a note of the way all of us have been fooled!!

P.S. This poster trusts the US and its Canadian, Australian and European allies will be firm in their demand!!

[Mike Havenar]

What a farce. Neither side wants peace; both sides are making money on the war; Israel says the "peace process" is doomed, if Fatah shares power with Hamas. But Israel has defied all efforts to negotiate the East Jerusalem building program, knowing it is a key demand for negotiation. This had already "doomed" the "peace process," which would be more aptly named "the war process." When are Israelis going to follow the lead of their Arab brethern, take to the streets in massive numbers, and demand an end to the old, corrupt regime? The US has no credibility at all, neither in the Arab world, nor in Israel.

[Verballistic]

It doesnt matter where Hamas is headquartered, their twisted terrorist mission is STILL the same. There will NEVER be peace for Palestine as long as Islamic terrorist cutthroats like HAMAS are calling the shots for the Palestinians.

These are links to actual VIDEOS of CHILDREN's TV shows produced by Hamas to TEACH KIDS TO HATE:

http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/2628.htm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=illF1vt5g1Q

Until Hamas & their fellow cutthroats stop producing this twisted, perverted television filth, there will NEVER be peace for Palestinians. To see precious Palestinian CHILDREN be fashioned into HATE-FILLED TERRORISTS like that is twisted & sick.

The more people see this twisted garbage, the more they will understand Hamas is the real problem for Palestine. If Palestine became independent tomorrow, Hamas would still launch rockets into Israel until it is destroyed...or until they are destroyed, which is the far more likely outcome. The Palestinian people deserve far better than the misrepresentation they get from militant Islamic CUTTHROATS like the terrorists in Hamas.

Hamas was officially designated as an ISLAMIC TERRORIST organization way back in 1997 by the Clinton Administration for GOOD reason. Their goal is the same as Al Qaeda & the Taliban>>to establish a GLOBAL ISLAMIC CALIPHATE where the whole planet is ruled by Sharia Law.