Proclaiming “In the Name of Allah Most Gracious Most Merciful,” The Islamic “Resistance Movement,” a.k.a. terror group Hamas, on Monday released a new version of its charter, headlined “A Document of General Principles and Policies,” which is being celebrated as a call for compromise and reconciliation. Indeed, it appears that Hamas has adopted a tiny bit of the thinking of the Yasser Arafat school of salami-style peace and harmony – namely, take what you can from the Jews today, postpone plans to annihilate them until you’re in a better position to do it.
According to item 18 in the new charter, “the following are considered null and void: the Balfour Declaration, the British Mandate Document, the UN Palestine Partition Resolution, and whatever resolutions and measures that derive from them or are similar to them. The establishment of ‘Israel’ is entirely illegal and contravenes the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people and goes against their will and the will of the [Arab nation]; it is also in violation of human rights that are guaranteed by international conventions, foremost among them is the right to self-determination.”
Also: “Hamas believes that no part of the land of Palestine shall be compromised or conceded, irrespective of the causes, the circumstances and the pressures and no matter how long the occupation lasts. Hamas rejects any alternative to the full and complete liberation of Palestine, from the river to the sea.”
So the fundamentals are still very much in place. “However,” the charter continues, “without compromising its rejection of the Zionist entity and without relinquishing any Palestinian rights, Hamas considers the establishment of a fully sovereign and independent Palestinian state, with Jerusalem as its capital, along the lines of the 4th of June 1967, with the return of the refugees and the displaced to their homes from which they were expelled, to be a formula of national consensus.”
Bursting with generosity. But wait, lest you come to the erroneous conclusion that the Hamas’ tacit recognition of Jewish life inside the green line means the group is embracing the Oslo Accords, the charter clarifies: “Hamas affirms that the Oslo Accords and their addenda contravene the governing rules of international law in that they generate commitments that violate the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people. Therefore, the Movement rejects these agreements and all that flows from them, such as the obligations that are detrimental to the interests of our people, especially security coordination (collaboration – [sic.]).”
So, whatever past agreements signed with Israel, which created Hamas’ nemesis, the Palestinian Authority, are also null and void.
In conclusion: “Hamas welcomes the stances of states, organizations and institutions that support the rights of the Palestinian people. It salutes the free peoples of the world who support the Palestinian cause. At the same time, it denounces the support granted by any party to the Zionist entity or the attempts to cover up its crimes and aggression against the Palestinians and calls for the prosecution of Zionist war criminals.”
So, why can’t we all just get along already?