Hamas deal last straw for Congress on US aid to Palestinians

[azurnoir]

Source: al-monitor

Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., the author of the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act, called for an immediate suspension of US aid to the Palestinian Authority (PA). The 2006 law, passed after Hamas won that year's legislative elections, prohibits support for a "Hamas-controlled Palestinian Authority."

"The Administration must halt aid to the Palestinian Authority and condition any future assistance as leverage to force Abu Mazen [Mahmoud Abbas] to abandon this reconciliation with Hamas and to implement real reforms within the PA," Ros-Lehtinen, who chairs the House Foreign Affairs panel on the Middle East, said in a statement. "U.S. law is clear on the prohibition of U.S. assistance to a unity Palestinian government that includes Hamas, a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, and President [Barack] Obama must not allow one cent of American taxpayer money to help fund this terrorist group."

Her Democratic counterpart on the subcommittee, Ted Deutch of Florida, issued a similar warning.

"President Abbas now stands at a pivotal crossroad — does he want peace with Israel or reconciliation with Hamas?" Deutch said. "Be certain that the Palestinian Authority will face significant consequences if a unity government is formed that includes terrorist members of Hamas."



Read more: http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2014/04/suspend-aid-reconciliation-hamas-fatah-congress.html#ixzz2zq3nUN44

[Purveyor]

1. Maybe Russia/Iran will chip in to help out.

That would really put the NATO crusaders in a dither, indeed.

[Fozzledick]

2. Iran has already cut off Hamas over their support of Sunni rebels in Syria

and Russia isn't real fond of Islamist terrorists - they're already fed up with them in Chechnya.

[Purveyor]

3. Perhaps, however there are other factors in play that just may upset the

status quo.

[lostincalifornia]

4. The problem is both Israel and the Palestinians are not doing any of their "sides" any good. Israel

continues to build settlements, and the Palestinians are extremely divided.

This tit for tat has got to stop. I am not sure how it will be done, but both parties MUST be compelled, "forced", to sit at the negotiating tables without any preconditions

Most like that means pressure need to be put on both sides.

Frankly, the 8 years of bush pretty much destroyed all the work that had been done by every previous administration. In fact when Clinton left office, he provided a perfect opportunity for the next administration to continue. Of course we all know what happened then. bush destabilized the entire middle east, destroyed any counter balance of power that Iraq and Iran provided, and systematically destroyed the progress that had been made between Israel and the Palestinians, taking any hope away from the Palestinians, and leaving much of Israel frustrated without any semblance of stability.

[Sam1]

5. "Does he want peace with Hamas, or peace with Israel?" Netanyahu said. "You can have one but not the

other. I hope he chooses peace. So far, he hasn't done so."

Fatah and Hamas might as well make peace because they are never going to have peace with Israel.