Intransigent Hamas
It's easy to call for a Middle East peace. But what if Palestinian leaders don't want it?

Wednesday, October 11, 2006

STIRRING BUT thoughtless appeals for a Middle East peace settlement continue to ring out around the world. Just last week a new one appeared, signed by 135 "global leaders," that called for "a new international conference, ideally held as soon as possible." Most of the sponsoring statesmen live far from the region -- in Europe, Latin America, Africa, Australia. Their statement asserted that "the injection of new political will" from "the international community" was what is needed to break the impasse between Israel and the Palestinians.

In fact, the problem is a lot more specific, and a lot tougher. That's why it was helpful that the foreign minister of Egypt decided to publicly speak his mind on the subject the other day. Ahmed Aboul Gheit -- who has spent the past several months immersed in a failing effort to restore the broken connections between the Palestinian Authority and its international donors, as well as Israel -- placed the blame exactly where it belongs: on the Palestinian political leadership. "The Palestinian situation is marred by sharp divisions and battling; it is a misery and shameful for any Arab and any Palestinian," the minister told the government newspaper al-Ahram.

The Egyptian frustration is understandable. Negotiations between the Palestinians and Israel, and Western aid to the Palestinian government, can't go forward because the governing Hamas movement refuses to recognize Israel or previous Israeli-Palestinian accords. It also won't renounce the use of violence against Israeli soldiers or civilians, or release the soldier its militants abducted from inside Israel in June. Egyptian negotiators have won Israeli agreement to release up to 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the hostage, but Hamas won't go along.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, from the competing Fatah movement, has tried repeatedly to win Hamas's agreement on a new unity government that would indirectly recognize Israel, a half-step that might lure back some desperately needed European aid. No deal. This week the government of Qatar intervened, sending its foreign minister shuttling around Gaza with a six-point plan under which Hamas and Fatah would unite on the platform of a two-state solution. Once again Hamas said no.

In case there was any doubt, Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh spelled out Hamas's position at a rally last weekend: "I tell you with all honesty, we will not recognize Israel, we will not recognize Israel, we will not recognize Israel." Mr. Abbas responded by threatening, as he has before, to dissolve the Palestinian government or order a referendum. But he lacks the legal authority either to remove Hamas from power or to schedule a vote of any kind.

It's easy enough for global leaders to issue flowery appeals for action on the Middle East or to imply that progress would be possible if only the United States used its leverage with Israel. The stubborn reality is that there can be no movement toward peace until a Palestinian leadership appears that is ready to accept a two-state solution. That's why there need to be fewer manifestos and more frank messages such as the one delivered by Mr. Aboul Gheit: "Those leaders and the Palestinian people will find out that they are losing a chance."