Kabil and Habil

Getting Real With Hamas

Nathan J. Brown, in Foreign Policy: Accommodating a Hamas-led government and keeping international aid flowing may be more effective—but only if it supports the long-term goal of peace. Is that possible? Or is the group’s agenda simply too extreme? Hamas, after all, rejects a two-state solution and maintains a right to resistance—and the group’s definition of resistance includes murderous attacks on civilian targets.

Therefore, conditioning aid is a sound approach. Still, presenting demands for immediate change in stark and aggressive terms will likely elicit only resistance. Hamas is a movement that prides itself on its principles and is unlikely to abandon them easily. Even if some of its leaders wanted to shift positions, the movement’s ponderous decision-making structures would make it difficult to do so in the face of outside pressure. Any change in Hamas will likely be gradual.

As much as possible, the West should allow pressures from within the Arab and Muslim world to work. It’s important to recognize that the Palestinians themselves may demand a more moderate approach to Israel. Hamas is extremely sensitive to Palestinian public opinion and recognizes that the majority of voters actually favored parties supporting a two-state solution. (Hamas’s electoral campaign avoided mention of its hard-line position on Israel.)

Hmm, interesting. So maybe Hamas' win was less about down with Israel, and more due to Fatah's corruption and the desire of the Palestinians to go with a party that could deliver social services and economic growth.

And Hamas sensitive to public opinion?! This is sounding more and more like what happened in Ireland when the emergence of the IRA's "political arm" Sein Fein paved the way for an end to decades of violence.

Of course, the British negotiated with the terrorist IRA. Israel refuses to talk to Hamas, at least officially.

It's weird--Israel, which has long touted its status as the only democracy in the Middle East, so far seems determined to avoid talking to what is now its sister democracy.

For better or for worse, the Israelis and the Palestinians are joined at the hip. Imagine if the Palestinians start getting their house in order--will their neighbors react accordingly? I guess we'll find out how much of of Israeli identity is built around its founding ethos of a nation besieged by enemies.

As for Hamas, whose identity has been forged by terrorism, perhaps they can take heart in how as times changed the Stern gang put down their bombs and eventually produced a prime minister of Israel.

Image of Titian's 1576 painting Cain and Abel from Hope College.