What to do?

Ephraim Sneh

 The two main reasons for the Hamas victory in the Palestinian parliamentary elections were that the Palestinian people was fed up with the incompetent and corrupt regime established by Yasser Arafat and the power struggles in Fatah. That leadership struggle, between those who led the intifadas and those who came with Arafat from Tunisia, disintegrated and weakened Fatah before the crucial elections.

 

But there were two other reasons: The Israeli unilateral withdrawal from Gaza, which was interpreted by the Palestinians as a Hamas victory and not as the achievement of Abu Mazen and Fatah, and the fact that the Israeli government did practically nothing to strengthen the Abu Mazen government, which was identified with Fatah, while some of its actions actually deliberately weakened it.

 

These are the basic facts that we must remember when we consider what Israel should do:
* The elections were democratic and non-violent, under international inspection. So the legitimacy of the elections cannot be challenged.
* Hamas is an Islamic political-religious movement, whose ideology rejects the existence of Israel and regards terror as the main mean for achieving its goals.
* Despite Hamas' victory, most Palestinians in the territories do not want a renewed intifada.
* It is impossible to rule and manage the PA without daily contact with Israel. Issues like trade, water, energy and environment require every Palestinian government to maintain permanent liaison mechanism with Israel.
* In the long run there is no way to sustain a modern Palestinian society with a growing economy without economic cooperation with Israel. Israel's per capita GDP is at least 20 times that of the Palestinian territories. Only through dynamic cooperation with the Israeli economy the Palestinian economy can substantially grow.

 

 That is why the Hamas is unable to adhere to its ideology and its boycott on Israel and to successfully run a Palestinian state.

 

Israel's goal is to force Hamas, as the largest political power in the PA, to change its doctrine and its terrorist ways. If Hamas refuses to do so, Israel's goal is to prove to the Palestinian people that Hamas, despite its electoral victory, cannot govern and lead a Palestinian state. We cannot accept, under any circumstances, an Islamic terror state at our side.
 

What should Israel do now? It should not conduct political negotiations with any government that includes Hamas as long as it keeps its doctrines and its weapons. No aid should be provided to such government, except for humanitarian needs relating to the population in the territories; The Israeli government should declare that it is ready to renew negotiations for a permanent status agreement with any Palestinian government that is committed to the Oslo accords and to the Roadmap.

 

Israel must evacuate the illegal outposts in the West Bank - not as a goodwill gesture toward the Palestinians but out of respect to our own rule of law, and in order to increase the international pressure on the Palestinian Authority to disarm the militias. No unilateral withdrawals should be made in the West Bank in order to avoid further strengthening of Hamas. The security fence must be completed, as a vital defensive measure that saves lives.
 

The international community must act like us with regard to a Hamas-led government. If European governments talk to Hamas as it is, it will only encourage the Islamic extremists elsewhere. Egypt and Jordan have a clear interest in preventing an Islamic terror movement of leading a legitimate government. It must be reminded that the struggle against Islamist extremism is not the role of Israel only.

 

 

 

The writer is the Chairman of Labor faction in the Knesset.