The Palestian Authority’s Hamas government has backed off its previous statements that it would never recognize Israel’s right to exist by saying that they might do it if Israeli agreed to retreat to its 1967 borders. The Jerusalem Post quotes Al-Jazeera:
According to a Thursday report on Al-Jazeera, the Hamas government will recognize Israel if Israel withdraws to the 1967 borders. Hamas officials close to Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh expect Haniyeh to announce the change in the organization’s platform in the next few days, Army Radio reported.
Ed Morrissey thinks this great progress:
This would appear to vindicate the hard line approach taken by the US and surprisingly echoed by the EU. Hamas had threatened to get its cash needs fulfilled by other countries in the region, especially Iran, after having the West wash its hands of the Palestinians when they elected Hamas into power. It now looks as though Hamas had its bluff called and perhaps once again proved the historical disregard that Arab nations have always had for the Palestinians.
Except that this essentially moves the “peace process” back to where it was fifteen years ago. Indeed, it is tantamount to saying, “We agree not to go to war with you if you just surrender.”
Jeff Goldstein gets it right:
It tells you something about an organization when it is big news that they’ve decided—provisionally—to acknowledge the right of another state “to exist.” And yet these people still find supporters—at least for their “political” platform—among many Americans and Europeans.
Surely, this is simply a non-starter as a negotiating ploy.
