Posted on 01/26/2006 9:44:26 AM PST by NormsRevenge
PARIS - World leaders, uneasy at the prospect of a Hamas-led Palestinian government, immediately exerted pressure on the Islamic militants Thursday to recognize Israel and renounce violence as a precondition for support.
That a group listed as a terrorist organization by the European Union and the United States won seemingly fair-and-square at the ballot box compounded the dilemma for foreign governments. While they welcomed the smooth running of the Palestinian legislative elections, the militants' stunning showing also unsettled many and threw Middle East peacemaking into turmoil.
"Hamas won," said Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Wiesel. "Hamas is surely not a democratic movement. Its ideas are surely not humanistic ideas.
"What do we do now?"
European governments and the United States presented a united front — insisting that Hamas renounce violence and recognize Israel's right to exist — and planned meetings to coordinate their response. A senior European Parliament lawmaker, Elmar Brok, warned of a possible cutoff of European Union aid for the Palestinians if Hamas does not change its policies.
"You cannot have one foot in politics and another in terror," said U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, adding that for the United States, Hamas is still a terrorist organization.
"The whole of the international community has the responsibility to accept the outcome of any fair and democratic election," said British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw. "But in this case Hamas has a clear responsibility to understand that with democracy goes a rejection of violence."
British Prime Minister Tony Blair's spokesman was blunt: "We can only do business with people who renounce terrorism," he said.
Concern crossed political divides, with traditional supporters of the Palestinian cause — such as Italy's center-left opposition — among those expressing concern. The Italian government said Hamas' victory could indefinitely postpone any chance of Israeli-Palestinian peace and make the creation of a Palestinian state more difficult.
"It is a very, very, very bad result," Italian news agencies quoted Premier Silvio Berlusconi as saying.
Rice was due to meet in London on Monday with U.N., Russian and European leaders as the so-called "Quartet" evaluates the election results and tries to decide how to proceed with peacemaking efforts.
EU foreign ministers meeting Monday also will discuss the 25-nation bloc's response.
In the Arab and Islamic worlds, some were jubilant. Hamas' win topped the news on state-run radio in Iran — which is accused by Israel and the United States of supplying Hamas and other Palestinian militants with weapons and funding.
"This is a victory to all the region's free people," said Ayyoub Muhanna, a 29-year-old who owns a spare parts shop in Lebanon. "The Palestinians gave their vote to the party that gave of its blood."
In Pakistan, a lawmaker from the hard-line Islamic opposition said Israel and the United States would be enemies of democracy if they refused to negotiate with a Hamas-led government. An Islamic leader in Indonesia said Hamas' win must be recognized as an expression of Palestinian aspirations.
"Hamas' victory heralds a change in the entire region. This symbolizes that Islamic groups are getting successful," said the Pakistani lawmaker, Liaqat Baluch.
Japan hailed the successful holding of elections as "an important step toward building a democratic Palestinian state" but also said it expects the Palestinian Authority "to control the extremists" and work for peace.
Israel, the United States and the European Union have said they would not deal with a government led by Hamas, which has carried out dozens of suicide bombings, seeks Israel's destruction and has said that it opposes peace talks and will not disarm.
Sweden's foreign minister, Laila Freivalds, said Hamas' showing was "a protest against those in power who have not done enough, a reaction to the incapacity to lead the political process forward."
But she said the 25-nation EU cannot cooperate with Hamas unless it changes its policies. In France, the prime minister said renouncing violence, accepting progress toward peace, recognizing Israel and the Oslo peace accords were "indispensable" conditions for working with "a Palestinian government of any kind."
"These (election) results may confront us with an entirely new situation which will need to be analyzed," said EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana.
The EU has given millions of euros (dollars) in aid to the Palestinian Authority to help reconstruction efforts in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank — funding that was called into question following Hamas' win.
"It is obvious that the EU would never countenance funding a regime that continued an armed fight against Israel," said Ignasi Guardans, a Spanish member of the European Parliament. "But we cannot push for democracy and then deny the result of free and fair elections."
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AP reporters around the world contributed to this report.
Wel,l, this is very interesting....but who did Europe and the US and the rest of "the West" think would win?
The saving grace ( and it is a gruesome one) might be that if Hamas does NOT renounce terrorism officially and terrorism continues within Israel proper, then "Palestine" officially becomes a terrorist state, and can be identified and dealt with as such.One no longer has the situation of loose-cannon terrorist facti0ns committing atrocities, and "leaders" like Arafat pretending he didn't direct it. I shudder to think of what that might mean. I am a real amateur at analyzing the ongoing Arab-Israeli- Palestinian problem, but I see the possibility of mass carnage in the future.
You beat me to it - why on earth are the Palestinians carrying a flag of Saruman the White???
I'm surprised the Palis don't have the outline of a white hand plastered across their faces.
Remember, Islam is a "religion of peace". That's the line, and they're sticking to it.
Hamas calls for "economic Jihad" against the U.S.
HAMAS' Al-Rantisi Says US 'First Enemy' of Palestinian People
Rantisi: We will drive all Jews out of Palestine [And Bush is troubled by trying to assasinate him?]
Target Israeli politicians: Rantisi
Hamas admits being part of global jihad
Hamas Release Video Of British Suicide Bombers
The Globalization of Hamas Terrorism (America and Canada on their agenda)
GLOBAL JIHAD -- Report: Hamas planned attacks in U.S.
Yassin: Jewish state could be established in Europe
Israel: Canadian admits to planning attacks in N. America: DON'T IGNORE THIS
Hamas Leader Rantisi -- "Massacre The Jews"
Hamas in America-The question may no longer be if Hamas will attack America, but when.
A Pro-Hamas Foreign Policy?-Why is Washington urging terrorists to run for elective office?
Secretary Rice on CNN: US will respect elections if Hamas wins
White House: OK if Hamas controls PLC- "business professionals...not terrorists"
I suppose she says that to the Saudis too...
Articles on Israel can also be found by clicking on the Topic or Keyword Israel.
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Perhaps a bigger majority than you'd think. Rembember Fatah/al Aska Martyrs Brigade/PLO have the destruction of Israel as a primary objective in their Charter, as well as supporting violence. When it's in their interests. The divide between the parties wasn't the destruction of Israel, on which they agree, rather the corruption of the PLO in administering aid for the last decade.
When my daughter was small, I had her convinced for the longest time that the best way to determine how many cows were in a mingling herd was to count their legs and divide by four.
Shocked! Shocked, I tell you. Why, the very IDEA that there would be Jew-haters in Palestine. How can it be???
No kidding, what's the surprise? The EU is surprised? Because, what? They thot the terrorists wanted to be friends??? They thot the terrorists liked the Israelis? What the heck is the surprise here? Duh!
Lions and Tigers and Bombers, oh my! Democracy's a beeyotch, and then you die. At least we know what Palestinians want now.
Isn't that Saruman-looking guy Sheikh Yassin? I recall a different picture of Sheikh Yassin, posted on FR a year or two ago, in which he was not smiling after a visit by an Israeli attack helicopter.
Are there any Pa;estinian peaceniks? Could a Palestinian peacenik have run and lived long enough to make it to election day?
Did Iran buy itself a win for Hamas?
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