Khaled Abu Toameh

The downfall of the Muslim Brotherhood regime in Egypt is a severe blow to Hamas

Originally published at the Gatestone Institute. The consequences in the long-term are disastrous: they embolden the radicals and help raise new generations of Arabs...

On the political arena, the appointment of Hamdallah will have no impact whatsoever.

They have begun threatening businessmen who want to work with Israeli counterparts.

Kerry's plan to boost the Palestinian economy has hardly impressed the Palestinian Authority leadership.

Palestinians claim that the mere presence of Jewish visitors is a 'desecration' of the holy site.

Praising Abbas for instructing his security forces to stop torturing Palestinian detainees is like welcoming a convicted armed robber's promise to retire.

Palestinian youths from Hebron, though, who met with Israelis near Bethlehem to share their problems and insights have been forced to issue a statement distancing themselves from the meeting.

Al-Qaradawi's visit and statements also serve as a reminder that the Israeli-Arab conflict is centered, more than ever, around religion.

Palestinians in Lebanon are subjected to apartheid laws that deny them work, social and health benefits, and freedom of movement.

The Arab League is an incompetent and ineffectual body that has long been ridiculed by most Arabs.

Israel has never stopped Palestinians from holding free elections or implementing administrative and financial reforms.

PA officials and journalists later explained that the ban does not apply to some journalists working for the Israeli daily Ha'aretz and who report on 'Palestinian suffering.'

As prime minister of the Palestinian Authority, Fayyad was never involved in any of the peace talks with Israel.

Even if Mashaal himself changes, Hamas will always remain the same Hamas.

Fayyad has no grassroots support or political power bases among Palestinians.

A fatwa allows the jihadis to have sexual intercourse with women who fall captive during war.

The fatwa purportedly allows the jihadis, who abandoned their wives to fight against Assad's regime, to marry girls for a few hours to satisfy their sexual needs.

The Palestinian Authority, which has often displayed a large degree of intolerance toward journalists who refuse to serve as a mouthpiece for its leaders, wants to work only with sympathetic reporters.

Like the rest of the Arab and Islamic countries, Palestinians have been told that the U.S. is the "Great Satan" and the number one enemy of all Arabs and Muslims.

As Obama visits the region, he would do well to take the following facts into consideration.

When and if Obama visits, he will be reminded of the fact that many Palestinians continue to regard the U.S. as an enemy, not a friend.

The Gaza Strip is swarming with radical Islamist groups whose goal is to destroy Israel and the U.S. Most emerged after the Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip in 2005.

It now remains to be seen whether Obama is aware of this attempt to put pressure on him, or whether he will continue to turn a blind eye.

Today, it is clearer than ever that neither Hamas nor Fatah is interested in achieving unity -- each for its own reasons.

As far as many Western governments and journalists are concerned, physical assaults on Palestinian reporters in the Gaza Strip are fine as long as they are not perpetrated by Israel.

The downfall of the Mubarak regime has been a great blessing for Hamas, which has since emerged as a major player in the Palestinian and regional arena.

How can anyone talk about the two-state solution when thousands of Palestinian children are being trained to use weapons and explosives to replace Israel with an Islamic state?

The Hamas government in Gaza has been banning Western-style clothing and haircuts, and in some case forcing women to wear Islamic headdress.

It does not really matter who is in power in Israel: no Palestinian leader has a mandate to make any concessions to Israel, let alone sign a peace treaty.