(Financial Times Deutschland/Der Spiegel-Germany) Editorial - When Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh swapped his Kalashnikov for a suit, it fueled hopes of a transformation of the governing Hamas from a terrorist organization to a half tolerable and calculable Islamist party. But the latest attacks should bring optimists back down to reality: Israel is still dealing with the same military organization, one that is defined by its fight against the Jewish state. The military arm of Hamas seems to have a "life of its own," and rather than looking to Haniyeh, it looks to its radical exile leadership in Damascus (Syria) for its killing orders. Of course Hamas also has moderate forces, but a change in the entire organization might take years. Violence has been promoted as the only way to solve the problems for a very long time. So the West needs to prepare for the fact that, for the time being, Hamas will not change radically.
2006-06-27 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive