Hamas Towards Al-Qaida is Like Mixing Oil and Water
Abbas Accuses Hamas of Aid to Al Qaeda
A member of the security forces of Hamas stands guard in front of a mural showing the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat on a street in Gaza City, Wednesday, July 11, 2007. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas accused Gaza's Hamas rulers of allowing al-Qaida to infiltrate the coastal strip, and Hamas on Tuesday hotly denied the allegation. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa) Published: July 11, 2007
JERUSALEM, July 10 — Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, has accused his rivals in Hamas of having opened the door to Al Qaeda in Gaza.
In an interview on Monday with Italy’s RAI TV, Mr. Abbas, of Fatah, said, “Thanks to the support of Hamas, Al Qaeda is entering Gaza.”
The charge, denied by Hamas, underscored the depth of Mr. Abbas’s hostility toward Hamas since it seized control of Gaza nearly a month ago in a rout of Fatah forces.
A Hamas spokesman in Gaza, Sami Abu Zuhri, responded that Hamas had “no links” to Al Qaeda, adding that Mr. Abbas was “trying to mislead international opinion to win support for his demand to deploy international forces in Gaza.”
Hamas has tried to distance itself from Al Qaeda and its agenda of global jihad, saying its struggle is confined to the Israeli-Palestinian arena.
Al Qaeda’s deputy leader, Ayman al-Zawahri, called on Muslims around the world to help finance and arm Hamas in an audiotape posted on the Internet in late June. Then, Mr. Abu Zuhri said, “Hamas has its own program, regardless of the comments of this group or that group.”
Previously, Mr. Zawahri criticized Hamas for going into politics and joining with Fatah in a unity government, eliciting an angry reaction from Hamas.
A growing number of actions in Gaza in recent months have apparently been inspired by a Qaeda-style anti-Western ideology.
The Army of Islam, the shadowy group that held the BBC correspondent Alan Johnston hostage for almost four months, is said to have demanded the release from foreign prisons of figures associated with Al Qaeda.
Mr. Johnston, who was released last week, described his kidnappers as followers of a “jihadi agenda.”
Palestinian officials who are close to Mr. Abbas accused Hamas of having worked in concert with the Army of Islam, a onetime Hamas ally, in securing Mr. Johnston’s freedom.
But some experts in Israel doubted any connection between Hamas and Al Qaeda.
“I am not sure there is a real Al Qaeda presence in Gaza, though there are clearly people there who identify with it in spirit,” said Yoram Schweitzer, of the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv. Mr. Schweitzer dismissed the idea that Hamas would help Al Qaeda set up in Gaza. “On the contrary,” he said. “Hamas wants to be in control there. It would do all it could to stop it.”
At a news conference with Prime Minister Romano Prodi of Italy in the West Bank city of Ramallah on Tuesday, Mr. Abbas called for an international peacekeeping force in Gaza. Mr. Prodi remained noncommittal, saying he had not discussed the issue in any depth with Mr. Abbas.
Hamas has rejected the proposal for an international force in Gaza, threatening to treat any foreign presence there as an occupying force.
In an interview on Monday with Italy’s RAI TV, Mr. Abbas, of Fatah, said, “Thanks to the support of Hamas, Al Qaeda is entering Gaza.”
The charge, denied by Hamas, underscored the depth of Mr. Abbas’s hostility toward Hamas since it seized control of Gaza nearly a month ago in a rout of Fatah forces.
A Hamas spokesman in Gaza, Sami Abu Zuhri, responded that Hamas had “no links” to Al Qaeda, adding that Mr. Abbas was “trying to mislead international opinion to win support for his demand to deploy international forces in Gaza.”
Hamas has tried to distance itself from Al Qaeda and its agenda of global jihad, saying its struggle is confined to the Israeli-Palestinian arena.
Al Qaeda’s deputy leader, Ayman al-Zawahri, called on Muslims around the world to help finance and arm Hamas in an audiotape posted on the Internet in late June. Then, Mr. Abu Zuhri said, “Hamas has its own program, regardless of the comments of this group or that group.”
Previously, Mr. Zawahri criticized Hamas for going into politics and joining with Fatah in a unity government, eliciting an angry reaction from Hamas.
A growing number of actions in Gaza in recent months have apparently been inspired by a Qaeda-style anti-Western ideology.
The Army of Islam, the shadowy group that held the BBC correspondent Alan Johnston hostage for almost four months, is said to have demanded the release from foreign prisons of figures associated with Al Qaeda.
Mr. Johnston, who was released last week, described his kidnappers as followers of a “jihadi agenda.”
Palestinian officials who are close to Mr. Abbas accused Hamas of having worked in concert with the Army of Islam, a onetime Hamas ally, in securing Mr. Johnston’s freedom.
But some experts in Israel doubted any connection between Hamas and Al Qaeda.
“I am not sure there is a real Al Qaeda presence in Gaza, though there are clearly people there who identify with it in spirit,” said Yoram Schweitzer, of the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv. Mr. Schweitzer dismissed the idea that Hamas would help Al Qaeda set up in Gaza. “On the contrary,” he said. “Hamas wants to be in control there. It would do all it could to stop it.”
At a news conference with Prime Minister Romano Prodi of Italy in the West Bank city of Ramallah on Tuesday, Mr. Abbas called for an international peacekeeping force in Gaza. Mr. Prodi remained noncommittal, saying he had not discussed the issue in any depth with Mr. Abbas.
Hamas has rejected the proposal for an international force in Gaza, threatening to treat any foreign presence there as an occupying force.
Just Doesn’t Mix
posted by HRM Deborah of Israel and the Messenger of Peace at 7:25 PM
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