Obama Camp 'Prepared To Talk To Hamas'

The incoming Obama administration is prepared to abandon George Bush's �doctrine of isolating Hamas by establishing a channel to the Islamist organisation, sources close to the transition team say.

The move to open contacts with Hamas, which could be initiated through the US intelligence services, would represent a definitive break with the Bush �presidency's ostracising of the group. The state department has designated Hamas a terrorist organisation, and in 2006 �Congress passed a law banning US financial aid to the group.

Read the whole story here.

Comments

[MESGAIN26]

ISRAEL ALLREADY TALKS TO HAMMAS THEY JUST DONT WANT US TALKING WITH THEM

[enry straker]

Sure..

They talk to them from the skies. From the checkposts and from their army tanks.

[Rog49Thomas]

Talk to Hamas?

How about encouraged the founding and development of Hamas?

Israel encouraged "Islamism" as a counterweight to the PLO long ago and supposedly provided indirect funding to the original "Hamas" group (operating under another name).

See Richard Dreyfus "Devil's Game"

Martha Kessler (ex CIA)

Charles Freeman (former US Ambassador to Saudi Arabia)

Anthony Cordesman (CSS London)

[who38]

Good one....and on the money.

[hortonhearsawho2]

Gee, hope discussions don't, um, blow them away...

[Princeton]

Hamas is no more of a bogyman than Vietcong was. Get over it and do the right thing so both Palestinians and Israeli people can have peace and the conflict can be put to bed before it becomes WWIII. So pack your cowboy mentality and put it in the attic for a while, act like grownups and get it done. Also, give the Israeli leaders and Feta other type of handouts so they don't thing their sugar daddy is going to leave them if there is no more enemy.

[who38]

Good solution; cynical but realistic. Thanks.

[Kalima]

So what is wrong with talking, has anything else worked so far?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/jan/08/barack-obama-gaza-hamas

[gladys46]

Perhaps it's the design ... IMO, if you want peace you seek peace by diffusing the ire not inflaming it !

[Kalima]

Yes, yet people just repeat their mistakes over and over, expecting different
results and these people, lead our countries around the world, in our name.

[2178743]

Engage Hamas with the might of Israel and the US armed forces. That's how you end terrorism, not by talking to them.

www.usefulopinions.blogspot.com

[enry straker]

The main source of international terrorism are the US and israeli military.

Try, for once, putting yourself in the shoes of a ordinary iraqi citizen during 'SHOCK AND AWE' or that of a palestinian refugee under operation 'CAST IRON' ( or some similar name ).

You would be living a life of daily terror. You can be shot, tortured, captured without trail - and Israel and the US just have to call you a terrorist - and that's It. No other questions need to be asked.

Today hamas might be called a terrorist group. But for the last 60+ years, every group of major palestinians have been called a terrorist. There is no group in palestine which has not been called a terrorist.

I guess it makes it easier to sell a genocide to the western audience this way - given the complicity of your media.

[Princeton]

So what you're saying is do the same thing over and over again and expect a different result?

Like or not Hamas is the representative of the Palestinian people.

What Bush and Israel have been doing (and calling it negotiations) is to find a corrupt factions and dictate terms to them. Maybe what they should have talked to Hamas leaders, then they could have tried and offered them Swiss back accounts like they're probably doing Fata leaders.

[Witchitalineman]

This is not the right way to engage Hamas. It solves nothing and sure in heck doesn't end terroism. What will end terrorism is providing land, food, water and education so that all people may better themselves.

[cornagainstsorcery]

No sir. That's how you create more terrorists.

[gwhizz]

because that's worked so well so far.

[scooperss]

I don't believe this story. Not after the senate voted to unanimously reaffirm I has the right to de fend herself from G and the house is expected to follow posthaste.

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/news/2009/01/us_senate_supports_israels_gaza_incursion.php

[cornagainstsorcery]

Your logic is muddled a bit. Talking with Hamas would not require recanting on the position that I has the right to defend itself.

[HallStyle]

We need to let the World Know that what BUSH was doing the last 8 years that this Administration isn't going to continue! We must speak to anyone we disagree with! Period. That is what ADULTS DO! We don't go running to our corner! We don't take our ball and go home. We deal with the situation. We show leadership. We don't BULLY AND INTIMIDATE! We point out our positions and make it clear where we stand. Then we look for areas where we CAN compromise and areas that we ALL can agree on.

[enry straker]

Dude...

I think you are in the wrong country

You are right in terms of optimal negotiating strategy - but the US negotiator­s/politici­ans have this in-built belief of FIRST AMONG EQUALS ( another way of saying - THE ONLY SUPERPOWER )

Every international negotiation has this stamp of supremacy and arrogance.

This goes back way more than 8 years. It goes back to the 2ed world war and beyond...

[Hirnlego]

The truth is that during all these years all presidents speak with the enemy.

[HallStyle]

True! They just don't want to be seen as conceding anything. They always want to appear to be strong. It is all politics.

[brynnrose thorn]

Change that to "most" presidents and I'll concur. I very much doubt Bush did.

[some-realtalk]

The Obama campaign has already said this story is BULLSH*T! The Obama campaign has said that Obama has NO INTENTION of negotiating with Hamas.

[hortonhearsawho2]

and you took the trash out and made your bed right ?

[scooperss]

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/news/2009/01/us_senate_supports_israels_gaza_incursion.php

"When we pass this resolution, the United States Senate will strengthen our historic bond with the state of Israel, by reaffirming Israel's inalienable right to defend against attacks from Gaza, as well as our support for the Israeli-Palestinian peace process," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada ...."

Happened yesterday.

[who38]

Good old Harry. Sheldon must be proud.

[Clem2]

I think it's fine that he attempt to negotiate. But since Hamas goal is to obliterate Israel, unless they change their goal to something like caring about the Palestinian people, how do you deal with that? Israel can't agree to its own destruction, that's what Hamas lives for, none of the Arab countries want the Palestinians because of their extremism and they have, in fact, been booted out of some.... so I wish Obama well. Sincerely! I just don't see what can be accomplished with Hamas considering their stated goals.

And since the Palestinians selected them as their political leaders, I don't much care about them either. If the Arab nations around them don't care (other than to get at Israel), why should I?

[brynnrose thorn]

The way to get to Hamas is through Iran. Without Iran's support, they're nothing. Al Queda wants to take advantage of the chaos in Gaza to infiltrate. That would not please Iran, so that could be a bargaining chip to use in negotiations with them.

[indyleftist]

Hamas is Suni
Iran is Shiite

Iran's support for Hamas is rhetoric only.
You must be thinking of Hezbollah which Iran does support

[pieco]

This To posting this Comment...­....
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[a human being]

If you read :

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/jan/07/gaza-is http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/08/opinion/08khalidi.html?_r=3rael-palestine
http://www.johnpilger.com/page.asp?partid=519

Then Google « us foreign aid to Israel” you’ll get over a million hits among which you should read at least : http://fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/RL33222.pdf (prepared for Members and Committees of Congress )

Then you should agree that the President elect’s team should talk to Hamas and the rest of the people ignored by the current administration.

[FebM]

"An injustice somewhere is a threat to justice everywhere" MLK

[mamacat]

I wonder what the difference in cost is between a phone call to Hamas and another bomb for Israel.