Just talk

European approaches to Hamas appear empty-handed, though secret contacts continue, writes Saleh Al-Naami

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Demonstrators face-off with an Israeli soldier near Ramallah during a protest by local and international peace activists at a spot where bulldozers were clearing land for a section of the wall

Ministers were waiting for dismissed Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh in his Al-Nasr office in Gaza last Tuesday when they were suddenly informed that he would be two hours late due to exceptional circumstances. The ministers did not know that Haniyeh, who was at home in Al-Shati Refugee Camp, was secretly meeting with a prominent European official at that official's request.

Ghazi Hamad, former spokesperson of Haniyeh's government and considered the "architect" of secret relations between Hamas and the Europeans, told Al-Ahram Weekly that many such meetings have been held recently between European politicians on the one hand and Haniyeh, his ministers, and Hamas leaders on the other.

Hamad added that the Europeans who initiate such meetings show an interest in getting to know Hamas's positions and ask its opinion on controversial issues such as a solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and specifically final status issues such as the Palestinian refugees, Jerusalem and borders. Hamad said that some of these Europeans sometimes attempt to mediate between Israel and Hamas on specific issues.

For example, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner sent a special envoy, Eban Layszir, on his behalf to try to mediate between Hamas and Israel on the case of captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, who has French citizenship. Official German circles have also offered their services to mediate between Hamas and Israel on Shalit, stressing that they have experience in mediating between Israel and Hizbullah. German mediation succeeded in convincing the Israelis and Hizbullah to reach a number of prisoner exchange deals. Hamad pointed to the participation of several European parties in indirectly transmitting truce and ceasefire formulations between Israel and Hamas. Europeans, and particularly Norwegians, have also tried to mediate between Hamas and Fatah and President Abbas, and Hamad said that top officials in the Norwegian Foreign Ministry and Norwegian consulate in Ramallah continue to play a role in this regard.

According to Hamed, the Europeans are eager to obtain responses to questions they consider worrying, such as Hamas's commitment to holding new elections and respecting their outcomes. Yet Hamed, who is enthusiastic about continuing such meetings with the Europeans, could not hide his disappointment that the communications have not developed further or contributed to the Europeans deciding to remove Hamas from the EU list of terrorist organisations.

Ahmed Youssef, Haniyeh's political advisor and an important channel of communications between Hamas and the Europeans, doesn't display disappointment over the European position. He says that the Europeans have tried to open up lines of communication with Hamas on the basis of it being a reality that holds power and will continue to have a strong presence in the Palestinian arena, either in the government or the Palestinian Legislative Council.

"Through their desire to build relations with Hamas, the Europeans are taking interest in the future," he told the Weekly. "They realise that one day they will find themselves forced to deal directly with Hamas and thus are making efforts to communicate with the movement, even if secretly and with it remaining on the European list of terrorist organisations." In contrast to Hamad's statements on communications between Israel and Hamas, Youssef stressed that interest is not limited to trying to mediate between Israel and Hamas. Rather, France is trying to learn the extent to which Hamas can integrate into the region's political system and be dealt with as a recognised movement due to its presence on the ground and representation of wide sectors of the Palestinian people.

Youssef said that the French informed him that French President Nicolas Sarkozy would propose a political solution to the conflict during his visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories. He will also hint at the necessity of recognising movements that enjoy wide popular representation, such as Hamas.

France, which will assume presidency of the European Union next month, Youssef pointed out, wants to create a counter- balance to the American role, which attempts to monopolise influence on developments in the Arab-Israeli conflict. He stressed that through its communications with European officials, Hamas is trying to make them aware of the reality of the Palestinian cause and limit the effect of Israeli propaganda as much as possible. He said that Hamas wants to break the isolation forced on it by Israel and America since it won the last elections and to try to open up more doors. He holds that the greatest problem facing the European position is its dependency on American politics and its unwillingness to cross lines set by Washington.

Youssef reported a number of European officials he has met in Gaza and several European capitals as saying that they currently cannot overstep US policy, though they are convinced that placing Hamas on the list of terrorist organisations is a "mistake and lacks good judgement and balance". They say this because the isolation the world has imposed on Hamas has brought results opposite to those desired -- in addition to being unethical and unjust. Youssef holds that the EU will continue to place Hamas on the list of terrorist organisations until the current US administration completes its term. He stressed that the Europeans fully comprehend the disastrous outcomes of US policy in the region. In contrast, Youssef stressed that Hamas possesses a great deal of political flexibility that allows it to dialogue with Europeans, and notes that European officials who meet with Hamas leaders leave with positive impressions and submit reports on this effect.

Walid Mudalil, professor of political science at the Islamic University in Gaza and a well-known writer, laughs at the bets Hamad and Youssef are placing on European enthusiasm for communications with Hamas. Mudalil asserts that European states want to break Hamas's political and ideological positions, or at least amend them to grow closer to Israel without Israel doing anything in return. Mudalil holds that Europe's informal communications with Hamas can be categorised as a "strategy of building bridges that aims to create a change in Hamas's positions without Europe assuming any responsibility". Through these communications, Europe is trying to convince Hamas to implement the conditions of the Quartet that involve recognising Israel, renouncing violence and respecting the commitments of the Palestine Liberation Organisation via agreements it signed with Israel, he told the Weekly.

Mudalil said that the communications between Hamas and Europe bear no political consequences for Europe because they are taking place on an unofficial basis and in secret. Continuation of these meetings will depend on Hamas's readiness to offer concessions, he said. Should Hamas offer concessions, he continued, it would be doing so indirectly and without Israel offering any in return. Mudalil suggested that European efforts to communicate with Hamas stem from European interests tied to the region's security, which makes the Europeans interested in resolving the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. In this framework, Europe is placing pressure on the party it holds as weaker -- the Palestinians -- Mudalil concluded.

On the extent of Hamas's readiness to respond to European requests to change its political positions, Mudalil says that such a development would depend on Hamas's view of its future in the Palestinian Authority (PA). "If Hamas thinks that being in the PA would represent a strategic interest for it and its endeavours, it would surely offer concessions, even if superficial ones, to the Europeans and others in order to help them remain in power," he said. Mudalil points out that Hamas had shown great and unexpected flexibility during negotiations over the Mecca Accord, for it agreed to the Arab initiative it had strongly opposed. Mudalil warns Hamas leaders that many international parties will try to turn it away from its positions in return for a "mirage". He says that as Hamas responds to the demands of the international community, the latter's appetite will grow for more concessions and stipulations until Hamas is stripped of its principles and positions.

Mudalil's conclusions are given credence by statements President Sarkozy made at the end of his meeting last Sunday with Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni when he described the French delegate's meeting with Hamas leaders in Gaza as a "mistake". While the Weekly confirmed that the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs would continue sending delegates to Gaza to meet Hamas officials, even after Sarkozy's statement, this still suggests that European states will be careful to keep these communications secret. Their unwillingness to defend or justify them casts doubts on their seriousness.