Gaza City, Asharq Al-Awsat- Hamas urged Arab governments on Monday not to comply with US calls to isolate the new Palestinian government. Dr. Yehiya Moussa, a senior official in the Islamic movement and a newly elected member of the Palestinian legislative council, said Arab leaders, who are expected to meet with Condoleezza Rice, US Secretary of State on her upcoming regional tour, should advise her to guarantee the democratic choice of the Palestinian people.
“We hope that Arab government representatives will tell Rice that Washington should play its role in halting the ongoing Israeli aggression on the Palestinian people, instead of working to starve it and besiege it, because of its determination to exercise its right to choose who it sees fit to lead it.”
According to Moussa, Hamas was confident Arab governments would not yield to US pressure, aimed at guaranteeing the maximum conditions to allow Israel to practice its aggression against the Palestinian people and deny them their national rights.
The elected legislator accused the Bush administration of double standards as it has adopted all the conditions Tel Aviv was attempting to force on Hamas. He also noted that the pointed out that the US had not intervened when Sharon worked to sabotage the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and embarrass him in front of his people, despite Abu Mazen’s recognizing Israel’s right to exist, his commitment to agreements and refusal to militarize the intifada.
As Rice prepared to tour the Arab world, Moussa indicated that Hamas’ leadership outside the Palestinian territories would continue its efforts to explain the group’s point of view. He also stressed that the Islamic movement shared more common grounds with Arab governments than differences.
Hamas was counting on its wide support across the Arab world to minimize the effects of US government policies, Moussa indicated. No Arab government would cooperate with US efforts to undermine the choice of the Palestinian people, he added.
In response to US media reports stating that Washington and Tel Aviv were cooperating to try and undermine the upcoming Hamas government, Moussa said that such actions would only increased popular support across the Arab world.
As the Israeli head of Intelligence Yuval Diskin, chief of Shin Beit Israeli security forces services prepared to visit the US capital to submit proof Hamas is cooperating with Iran, Moussa acknowledged Hamas had established relations with Iran but stressed they were “out in the open”, with Tehran providing assistance to the Palestinian people.
He added that Israeli incitement on this issue would be counter productive because Hamas cooperates with an Arab or Muslim side that supports the Palestinian cause and was not part of any regional coalition. The Islamic movement, the legislator added, is only concerned with the interest of the Palestinian people. This was the case with Iran and other Arab countries, including Syria and Gulf countries.