By Jerusalem Newswire Editorial Staff
Jun 06, 2005
In a major apparent shift in stated US policy, the Bush White House reportedly announced Monday that it would recognize the legitimacy of Hamas terrorists participating in upcoming PA parliamentary elections.
According to Reuters, US President George W. Bush has agreed to direct contacts with members of the terror group if they put down their arms and agree to hold to a temporary suspension of their efforts to murder Israeli Jews.
Hamas leaders have repeatedly stated their refusal to disarm before the eradication of the Jewish state, and US-backed PLO chief Mahmoud Abbas insists he will not honor commitments to forcibly collect the terrorists' weapons.
Observers cautioned that the new US position on Hamas would further ingrain the idea started with the PLO's acceptance that terrorism could result in political rewards.
European officials too have said they would likely remove Hamas from the EU's list of known terrorist organizations if it managed to win a considerable number of seats in the Palestinian Legislative Council election.
Israel is expected to tell British Foreign Minister Jack Straw, who is scheduled to arrive in the region Tuesday, that the EU's softening stance on Hamas threatens the global war on Islamic terrorism and the Middle East peace process.
For most Israelis, removing Hamas from the list of known terrorist organizations would call into question the EU's ability to play a constructive role in diplomatic negotiations.