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Hamas wants to boot Arafat
Hamas leader: group is ready to take over from ArafatHamas is prepared to assume leadership of the Palestinian people, a senior Hamas official said Thursday, a rare expression of the goal of the violent Islamic movement, while five Palestinians, another Arab and two soldiers were killed in clashes. Mahmoud Zahar, a leader of the Hamas political wing, told The Associated Press that his group is "absolutely" prepared to lead the Palestinian people now. He said Hamas has the infrastructure to take over leadership "politically, financially (and) socially." Hamas has been responsible for dozens of suicide bombing attacks against Israelis during 28 months of fighting. As a matter of Islamic principle, Hamas does not recognize the existence of a Jewish state in the Middle East, opposing Arafat's policy of creating a Palestinian state alongside Israel. Hamas has avoided direct conflicts with Arafat's regime up to now, though from time to time, clashes between the rival groups have erupted. [...] Zahar said the Hamas takeover would come through elections, not a military operation. Palestinians had elections scheduled for Jan. 20 but postponed them because Israeli troops are in control of most of the West Bank population centers. Reflecting Hamas policy, Zahar said the armed conflict with Israel would continue. Egypt has been trying to obtain a declaration from rival Palestinian factions to stop attacks on Israeli civilians, but Hamas has refused, torpedoing the efforts. Ziad Abu Amr, a Palestinian legislator from Arafat's Fatah movement, said Hamas leaders rarely state the takeover goal in public, but it is clearly their intention. "They want to mold things according to their vision," he said. "All along they presented themselves as an alternative, but they want to do it peacefully." By The Associated Press Posted by: growler 2003-02-06 |
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