Home>News Center>World
         
 

Israel drops bid for Hamas election ban
(AP)
Updated: 2005-10-24 09:20

Israel has dropped its campaign to ban the violent Islamic Hamas from Palestinian parliamentary elections, a senior official said Sunday, acknowledging defeat after President Bush pointedly skipped repeating the demand in a public appearance with the Palestinian leader last week.

In another election-related development, the Palestinian prime minister said a program is under way to disarm a militant group and bring its gunmen into the security services — a possible pattern for dealing with Hamas as it turns political after nearly two decades of deadly attacks against Israelis.

Israel never made specific threats against the Palestinians in connection with Hamas candidates in the January election, but hinted it would refuse to remove roadblocks and ease other travel restrictions vital to carrying out a free elections campaign.

Israel says it is still strongly opposed to Hamas participation because its charter calls for destruction of the Jewish state, but it will take no steps to stop it. "Are we going to go to war on this issue or interfere on this issue? No," the senior official said.

Also, Israel said if Hamas took part in the Palestinian government, there would be no hope for peace talks. That threat still hangs in the air.

"This organization will not be a legitimate partner for peace," another official said. "It's Hamas or us."

During the last five years, Hamas has carried out dozens of suicide bombing attacks that have killed hundreds of Israelis. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to make official policy statements.

Israel drops bid for Hamas election ban
Palestinian mourners carry the body of Abdullah Tamimi, 18, through the streets of the West Bank village of Deir Nizam, near Ramallah, during his funeral procession Sunday, Oct. 23, 2005.[AP]
The turning point came Thursday, when Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas met with Bush at the White House. While warning Abbas that violent Palestinian groups could undermine the democratic Palestinian state-in-the-making, Bush did not mention Hamas by name nor call for its exclusion from the election — a sign that despite Israel's strong feelings, the U.S. was not going to press the point.

In three rounds of local elections earlier this year, Hamas did well, forecasting significant inroads into the power of Abbas' Fatah Party when Palestinians vote for a parliament in January.

This is the first time Hamas is running candidates for parliament. Hamas skipped the only other election, a decade ago, complaining that the parliament itself is part of an interim peace accord with Israel, a pact Hamas rejects on religious principle.

Rebuffing Israeli demands to confront Hamas and disarm its cadres, Abbas prefers to achieve calm by persuasion and inclusion in political life. The effort has been partially successful at best, as violent groups continue sporadic attacks against Israelis, despite a cease-fire declared in February.

When Abbas was in Washington, Palestinian gunmen killed three Israelis in a drive-by shooting in the West Bank, and the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, linked to Abbas' Fatah, claimed responsibility.

On Sunday evening, Israeli troops shot dead a wanted Palestinian gunman in a shootout in the West Bank town of Tulkarem, the military said, adding that a soldier was lightly wounded during the exchange of fire. Relatives of the dead man said he was an Al Aqsa activist.

Earlier Sunday, Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia said a project is underway to train Al Aqsa gunmen as police officers and incorporate them into security forces — a way of neutralizing them.

"We have agreed today to establish five new camps for training and hosting 'stragglers'" from Al Aqsa who have not turned in their weapons, Qureia said. "We have a plan and we have started implementing it."

Previous efforts to disarm Al Aqsa have failed. An offer by the Palestinian government to buy weapons from militants fizzled, and earlier programs to give gunmen posts in security services have not yielded significant results.

Since Al Aqsa is close to Fatah, failure to bring its gunmen into the official fold would bode ill for similar efforts toward Hamas, the main Fatah rival.

Also Sunday, the main border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt reopened Sunday for 48 hours for humanitarian reasons.

Israel closed the Rafah terminal just before withdrawing from Gaza last month, citing security considerations. Thousands crossed the border in both directions during several days of chaos following the pullout, but the area has been mostly sealed since order was restored.

Palestinian officials said they expected 6,000 Palestinians to return to Gaza by Tuesday morning.



USS Park Royal crew await for Rice
Coffin of Milosevic flew to Belgrade
Kidnapping spree in Gaza Strip
 
  Today's Top News     Top World News
 

Australia, US, Japan praise China for Asia engagement

 

   
 

Banker: China doing its best on flexible yuan

 

   
 

Hopes high for oil pipeline deal

 

   
 

Possibilities of bird flu outbreaks reduced

 

   
 

Milosevic buried after emotional farewell

 

   
 

China considers trade contracts in India

 

   
  Journalist's alleged killers held in Iraq
   
  No poisons found in Milosevic's body
   
  US, Britain, France upbeat on Iran agreement
   
  Fatah officials call for Abbas to resign
   
  Sectarian violence increases in Iraq
   
  US support for troops in Iraq hits new low
   
 
  Go to Another Section  
 
 
  Story Tools  
   
  Related Stories  
   
Egyptian minister OKs European presence
   
Israel court bans use of 'human shields'
   
Israel suspends contacts with palestinians
   
Israel kills two Palestinians in West Bank
Manufacturers, Exporters, Wholesalers - Global trade starts here.
Advertisement
         
主站蜘蛛池模板: 欧美日韩国产在线人成| 91亚洲精品自在在线观看| 打屁股xxxx| 国产嫖妓一区二区三区无码| 9999热视频| 强开小婷嫩苞又嫩又紧韩国视频| 亚洲成在人线在线播放无码| 精品久久久久久| 国产一区风间由美在线观看| 黑人巨大sv张丽在线播放| 国产精品亚洲综合网站| 97视频资源总站| 天堂中文在线资源| 一区二区三区伦理高清| 成年男人的天堂| 久久久精品人妻无码专区不卡| 狠狠爱天天综合色欲网| 双乳奶水被老汉吸呻吟视频| 草草影院第一页| 国产精品毛片大码女人| 中文天堂最新版www| 日本漫画全彩口工漫画绅士 | 亚洲精品线在线观看| 直接观看黄网站免费视频| 午夜精品久久久久久毛片| 美女露胸视频网站| 国产chinasex对白videos麻豆 | 高清性色生活片欧美在线| 国产欧美视频在线| 亚洲欧美校园春色| 国产精品va一级二级三级| 18禁成人网站免费观看| 国产综合色在线视频区| 91精品导航在线网址免费| 国内大量揄拍人妻精品視頻| 99久久人人爽亚洲精品美女| 夜夜揉揉日日人人青青| av网站免费线看| 大学生男男澡堂69gaysex| a级毛片毛片免费观看久潮喷| 好吊妞视频在线观看|