In an assessment of the reconciliation accord initialled in Cairo last week between senior representatives of Fatah and Hamas, Lt. Col. (ret) Jonathan D. Halevi wrote: “The current agreement is in the category of a forced willingness to agree on general principles on the basis of a common political interest to obtain international recognition of a Palestinian state.”
It would be tempting to argue that the signing of an accord between Fatah and Hamas represents the first stage in healing the rift between the two organizations and setting the stage for a co-ordinated effort to arrive at a peace deal with Israel.
However, Halevi warns that “This strategy previously cost the Palestinian Authority the loss of its rule in Gaza, and now it may facilitate a Hamas takeover of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and over the PLO institutions as well.”
If one had any doubts about what Hamas is, and even if one were to overlook the contents of its Charter calling for the destruction of Israel, its response to the targeted assassination of Osama bin Laden should leave no one under any illusions.
On hearing of bin Laden’s death, Ismail Haniyeh, head of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, told reporters: “We condemn the assassination and the killing of an Arab holy warrior (shahid). We regard this as a continuation of the American policy based on oppression and the shedding of Muslim and Arab blood.” The mastermind behind the events of 9/11 in which nearly 3,000 innocent and defenceless human beings were murdered in cold blood is “an Arab holy warrior”!
Abbas and Haniyeh may be able to paper over the cracks and present a united front in order to obtain international recognition of a Palestinian state. However, the establishment of a Hamas ruled Palestine controlled by Iran-backed bin Laden sympathizers will put an end to any hopes there might have been of Israel making a deal with the Palestinians in the foreseeable future.
We Are For Israel 
In the light of this reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas, we are now thrown into a controversy over whether or not to continue funding the Palestinian Authority, for fear that through this reconciliation, Hamas will get its hands on some or all of these funds and use them to promote its program of terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians.
The media has already begun its attack campaign against Prime Minister Netanyahu’s decision not to transfer some $90 million dollars in tax revenue to the Palestinian Authority lest these funds by used for terrorist activities. They have chosen to give little credence to Netayahu’s concerns that in this reconciliation, Hamas has made not the slightest indication that, in the cause of peace, they would be willing to recognize the legitimacy of the State of Israel and that they would abandon their goal, as stated in their charter, to destroy that state.
The French government has likewise cast aside any concerns about the intentions of Hamas as it has given the Palestinian Authority a grant of over $14 million dollars. In this they will soon be joined by the European Union which is preparing to advance the Palestinians almost $122 million dollars. Both of them have done this or are ready to do this without even requesting any guarantees that their funds will not be turned over to Hamas and used for terrorist purposes.
As the United States Congress and the Obama administration grapples with whether or not they should continue to fund the Palestinian Authority without receiving such assurances, it should be of no surprise that Jeremy Ben Ami of J Street has embarked upon a campaign to pressure the members of Congress not to make any hasty or rash decisions on this matter; that they should seriously consider turning vast sums over to the Palestinians even if there is a possibility that those funds may purchase arms which Hamas will use to target Israeli civilians.
If there ever was a time when WAFI needed to step forward and make its voice heard on a national and international level, it is now! We need to speak out loudly and clearly that until we can be assured that whatever funds are delivered to the Palestinian Authority, whether by the United State or any other nation, are NOT going to be used in any way, manner, shape, or form, to support terrorist activities, we call upon all governments of good conscience to refrain from transferring such funds to the Palestinian Authority.