Comments by new Jihad Watch News Editor Marisol Seibold:
Not unlike Iran, the Palestinian Authority under Hamas continues the practice of talking out of both sides of its mouth: one can expect another outburst of threatening language to follow this vague diplomatic overture in short order. From Haaretz: “Haniyeh: National accord document deserves study”:
Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh responded publicly for the first time yesterday to the “national reconciliation” drafted last week in the Hadarim prison by Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti and Sheikh Abdel Halek Natshe of Hamas.
“We always demanded Israel’s recognition of Palestinian rights and the establishment of a Palestinian state, and if Israel recognizes these
principles, then we will decide on our position on the matter,” Haniyeh continued.
Give me ambiguity, or give me something else.
“The Zionist project is on the wane and its principles are becoming shaky, while the Palestinian and Arab project in Palestine is in an upward momentum, the results of which will be liberation of the land and Jerusalem and the realization of the right of return,” Haniyeh told the conference. “We saw what happened to the occupation in Sinai, Lebanon and Jordan and the
withdrawal from Gaza, and they are also considering additional withdrawals from the West Bank. All of this proves that there is a decline in the settlements project and an undermining of the occupation mentality…”
There you have it, not from the pundits, but from the highest levels of the Hamas leadership: withdrawals and land concessions — any and all of them to date — are read as a sign of weakness. Taking up the cause of the 1967 borders is only of use to Hamas in further chipping away at Israeli territory, until there is none left.