Ali Abunimah at EI, on Hamas's softening, post Cairo:
Another analysis of Hamas'
shift currently circulating argues that Hamas has accepted the
Palestinian "consensus" position of a two-state solution on every inch
of the 1967 occupied territories with removal of all settlements and
with the Right of Return. But it knows that no potential peace deal
coming from the Obama initiative will ever reach even these minimal
conditions, and that if Abbas and former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud
Olmert could not reach even the outlines of an agreement after two
years of negotiations, the chances of any deal with a
Netanyahu-Lieberman government are even tinier. In this scenario, Hamas
need not stand in the way of a two-state solution because it will fail
anyway. But by saying it would accept that minimalist outcome, it would
avoid blame for the failure and its adherence to resistance would be
vindicated….
[Khaled] Meshal's speech [of June 25] confirms Hamas' long-term shift away from Islamist
rhetoric toward mainstream Palestinian nationalist discourse. It
indicates that Hamas is highly sensitive to international and
Palestinian public opinion and is aware that Palestinians need to build
real international solidarity as part of a strategy to level the
glaring power imbalance with Israel. But it is not prepared to seek
recognition at any price. All this has implications for the movement's
message and methods.
This leaves the field open for an urgent debate among Palestinians
about what that future vision should be and what role resistance in all
its legitimate forms should play. No group of leaders, whether from
Hamas or any other organization, could or should carry the burden of
restoring Palestinian rights by itself. Hamas, like other Palestinian
organizations, can only be a guardian of fundamental rights to the
extent that it is embedded in a broader movement mobilized in Palestine
and globally to defend those rights.
