Thursday, March 8, 2012

Hamas is making a tactical appeal to the grassroots



Instead of declaring itself Iran's proxy, the movement is aligning with the democratic rise of 'moderate' Islamic politics

Tareq Baconi
guardian.co.uk, Thursday 8 March 2012

"Hamas officials have said that in the event of a war between Iran and Israel, they will not become involved on Tehran's side. While this is not surprising, other officials within the movement were quick to deny such reports.....

If anything, this move comes on the heels of several recent manoeuvrings aimed at better aligning Hamas with regional changes. The recent tour of the region by Ismail Haniyeh climaxed with explicit support for the people of Syria against a brutal regime. Also, Khaled Meshaal recently declared his intention to form a Palestinian Muslim Brotherhood, suggesting a desire to capitalise on the democratic rise of "moderate" Islamic parties in regional politics.....

At a time when people at the grassroots are calling the shots across the region, Hamas is prudently differentiating itself from other regimes and parties by visibly siding with the people.
This is not a new concept for Hamas, since it has always derived its legitimacy and popularity from Palestinians. Hamas feels – probably rightly – that it can capitalise on the changes sweeping the region. This will almost certainly be more rewarding than defending Iran for a potential, but improbable, return to financial support."

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