Identifier | Created | Classification | Origin |
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01TELAVIV4047 | 2001-07-27 11:41:00 | CONFIDENTIAL | Embassy Tel Aviv |
O 271141Z JUL 01 FM AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV TO SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 8308 INFO ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE |
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TEL AVIV 004047 |
1. (C) SUMMARY: GAZA LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL MEMBER AND LONG-TIME HAMAS WATCHER ZIAD ABU AMR TOLD POLOFF JULY 24 THAT HAMAS' INFLUENCE "HAS NEVER BEEN STRONGER" IN THE OCCUPIED TERRITORIES. IN ABU AMR'S VIEW, DEVELOPMENTS ARE "LENDING CREDIBILITY TO THEIR IDEAS AND DISCOURSE." HAMAS' STATURE HAS ALSO BEEN AIDED BY ITS PROMINENT INTIFADAH ROLE AND BY PM SHARON'S EFFORTS TO DELEGITIMIZE ARAFAT AND THE PA. ABU AMR HAD THE IMPRESSION THAT HAMAS WAS "IN NO HURRY TO DO ANYTHING," GIVEN THE BENEFITS THEY'RE REAPING FROM THE CURRENT SITUATION. ABU AMR DETAILED PA EFFORTS TO PERSUADE, CAJOLE, AND (IMPLICITLY) THREATEN HAMAS IN ORDER TO GET THEM TO STOP THE BOMBINGS. ABU AMR UNDERLINED THAT THE POST- DOLPHINARIUM 'STAND DOWN' WAS TACTICAL FOR HAMAS. NEW VARIABLES, SUCH AS REGIONAL DEVELOPMENTS, COULD CHANGE THE GROUP'S CALCULATIONS. END SUMMARY. HAMAS GETTING STRONGER BY THE DAY -------------------------- 2. (C) GAZA LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL MEMBER AND LONG-TIME HAMAS WATCHER ZIAD ABU AMR TOLD POLOFF JULY 24 THAT HAMAS' INFLUENCE "HAS NEVER BEEN STRONGER" IN THE OCCUPIED TERRITORIES. IN HIS VIEW, THE GROUP IS "BENEFITING BY DEFAULT." THE CURRENT SITUATION ALLOWS THEM TO POINT TO WHAT SHARON IS DOING TO THE PEACE PROCESS AND TO MAKE THE POINT THAT "AFTER SEVEN YEARS OF PROTECTING ISRAEL'S SECURITY INTERESTS, LOOK WHAT THEY ARE DOING TO THE PEACE PROCESS." IN ABU AMR'S VIEW, DEVELOPMENTS ARE "LENDING CREDIBILITY TO THEIR IDEAS AND DISCOURSE." THE "NATIONAL UNITY ATMOSPHERE" IN ISRAEL HAS ALSO HELPED HAMAS, HE NOTED, TO MAKE THE POINT THAT WITH PEACE NEGOTIATIONS, A FINAL STATUS DEAL, AND AN INDEPENDENT PALESTINIAN STATE FURTHER OUT OF REACH, HAMAS' REJECTIONIST IDEAS AND ANALYSIS SEEM MORE CREDIBLE TO MANY DISILLUSIONED, PESSIMISTIC PALESTINIANS. SHARON IS PLAYING INTO HAMAS'S HANDS BY UNDERMINING AND DELIGITIMIZING ARAFAT AND THE PA. HAMAS' STATURE HAS ALSO BEEN AIDED BY ITS PROMINENT INTIFADAH ROLE. IT HAS PARTICIPATED IN THE VIOLENT RESISTANCE AIMED AT ENDING THE OCCUPATION, MOUNTED MASS PUBLIC DEMONSTRATIONS, AND STEPPED UP ITS EXTENSIVE SOCIAL WELFARE NETWORK, SAID ABU AMR. 3. (C) ABU AMR HAD THE IMPRESSION THAT HAMAS WAS "IN NO HURRY TO DO ANYTHING," GIVEN THE BENEFITS THEY'RE REAPING FROM THE CURRENT SITUATION, SAID ABU AMR. HE ALSO MADE THE POINT THAT PALESTINIANS, INCLUDING HAMAS, WERE STILL CONFRONTED BY THE SHARON THREAT ISSUED AFTER THE DOLPHINARIUM TERROR ATTACK. AS A RESULT OF THAT SITUATION, HAMAS ALSO HAD TO FACTOR IN THE PA'S STRONG WARNINGS THAT "FOOLISH ACTS" WOULD NOT BE TOLERATED AND COULD FORCE THE PA TO MOVE AGAINST IT. PA "PERSUADING" HAMAS TO AVOID "FOOLISH ACTS" -------------------------- 4. (C) ABU AMR DETAILED PA EFFORTS TO PERSUADE, CAJOLE, AND (IMPLICITLY) THREATEN HAMAS IN ORDER TO GET THEM TO STOP THE BOMBINGS. AMONG OTHERS, HE MET WITH HAMAS SPIRITUAL LEADER SHEIKH YASSIN AND MADE THE FOLLOWING POINTS: -- IF SHARON DECIDES ON A "DECISIVE BLOW," NO ONE WILL BE EXCLUDED," INCLUDING HAMAS; -- HAMAS HAS A LONG-TERM "ISLAMIC STATE PROJECT, SO WHY JEOPARDIZE IT WITH SHORT-TERM "FOOLISH ACTS;" -- YOU DON'T NEED ANY MORE OF THESE BOMBINGS. YOU HAVE MADE YOUR POINT. THEY ARE TACTICAL, NOT STRATEGIC. IF THEY WERE STRATEGIC, YOU WOULD DO THEM EVERY DAY. MORE NOW WOULD NOT SERVE ANY PURPOSE; AND -- WHY PUSH YOUR LUCK WITH THE PA? IF YOU MISCALCULATE, YOU COULD BE FORCED INTO A CONFRONTATION YOU PROBABLY COULD NOT WIN. 5. (C) ABU AMR TOLD POLOFF HE HAD THE SENSE THAT HAMAS LEADERS WERE PERSUADED BY HIS ARGUMENTS (OTHERS IN PA ALSO WERE REPORTEDLY INVOLVED), FOR NOW AT LEAST. (NOTE: ABU AMR MADE CLEAR HE DID NOT SYMPATHIZE WITH HAMAS'S TACTICS OR GOALS, WITH REGARD TO PEACE PROCESS OR BUILDING AN ISLAMIC STATE. END NOTE.) WHEN ASKED THE BINYAMINA BOMBING WHICH TOOK PLACE AFTER THE TENET CEASE- FIRE AND THESE POST-DOLPHINARIUM ATTACKS, HE POINTED OUT THE THAT ATTACK APPEARED TO BE A PIJ OPERATION, A GROUP OVER WHICH THE PA HAS LESS CONTROL (AND WORSE RELATIONS THAN WITH HAMAS). OTHER PLAYERS, POSSIBLY WITH AN ANTI- PA AGENDA, INCLUDING IRAN AND HIZBALLAH, HAD MORE INFLUENCE. 6. (C) THIS IS NOT THE FIRST TIME ABU AMR HAS ACTED AS AN INTERMEDIARY BETWEEN THE PA AND HAMAS. HE WAS ALSO PART OF A MEDIATION EFFORT IN THE SPRING TO PREVENT DIVERGENT POLITICAL INTERESTS OF THE TWO GROUPS FROM LEADING TO OPEN CONFLICT. AS A PART OF THESE EFFORTS, ABU AMR PARTICIPATED IN "DISCUSSIONS" WITH HAMAS AND PA LEADERS TO EFFECT THE RELEASE OF HAMAS POLITICAL LEADER ABDEL-AZIZ AL-RANTISSI, WHOM THE PA HAD JAILED. (NOTE: AL-RANTISSI WAS JAILED FOR AN EXTENDED PERIOD FROM LAST SUMMER UNTIL FEBRUARY 2001, AND THEN RE-IMPRISONED FOR A FEW WEEKS IN APRIL FOR PUBLIC CRITICISM OF THE PA, CALLING ITS ACCEPTANCE OF THE JORDAN-EGYPT INITIATIVE "TREACHERY." ABU AMR IS APPARENTLY REFERRING TO THE MOST RECENT RELEASE. END NOTE) CURRENT STAND-DOWN TACTICAL; CALCULATIONS COULD CHANGE -------------------------- -------------------------- 7. (C) ABU AMR UNDERLINED THAT THE POST-DOLPHINARIUM 'STAND DOWN' WAS ALSO TACTICAL FOR HAMAS. NEW VARIABLES COULD CHANGE HAMAS' CALCULATIONS. AMONG SUCH VARIABLES COULD BE CHANGES IN THE REGIONAL SITUATION. HAMAS LEADERS OUTSIDE THE TERRITORIES OR PLAYERS LIKE IRAN OR EVEN SYRIA MIGHT EXERT PRESSURE THAT COULD CHANGE THE CALCULUS. TO ILLUSTRATE, ABU AMR DEVELOPED A POSSIBLE SCENARIO (AMONG MANY OTHERS): PERHAPS FOR SOME REASON ISRAEL "HIT" SYRIA. SYRIA IS TOO WEAK MILITARILY TO HIT BACK DIRECTLY SO IT WOULD USE A PROXY. HIZBALLAH COULD BE TIED DIRECTLY TO SYRIA, BUT HAMAS COULD POSSIBLY BE USED TO PROVIDE A 'NO FINGERPRINTS' PAYBACK. 8. (C) ABU AMR ALSO ASKED RHETORICALLY HOW LONG PALESTINIANS IN GENERAL WOULD BE "PERMANENTLY BLACKMAILED" BY SHARON'S THREAT TO DEAL A "DECISIVE BLOW," NOTING THAT EVENTUALLY THE POWER OF THE THREAT WOULD WEAKEN. SUCH WEAKENING COULD ALSO BLEND IN WITH THE MIX OF VARIABLES THAT WOULD AFFECT HAMAS' FUTURE POLITICAL CALCULATIONS, SAID ABU AMR. 9. (C) COMMENT: ONE OF THE STRONGEST FACTORS WHICH COULD PUSH HAMAS TO ACT IS A REVENGE MOTIVE, A DESIRE TO RETALIATE FOR ISRAELI ASSASSINATIONS OF ITS ACTIVISTS. IN THE PAST SUCH MOTIVATIONS HAVE SOMETIMES PUSHED THE HAMAS MILITARY WING, IGNORING OTHER POLITICAL CALCULATIONS. IT SHOULD BE NOTED THAT THE CONVERSATION WITH ABU AMR TOOK PLACE BEFORE THE ISRAELI ASSASSINATION OF NABLUS-BASED HAMAS ACTIVIST SALAH DARWARZE ON JULY 25. ABU AMR IS AN INFLUENTIAL PLC MEMBER WHO HAS WRITTEN ON HAMAS AND PIJ, FOLLOWS THEIR POLITICS, AND MAINTAINS GOOD RELATIONS WITH HAMAS LEADERS. IN EARLIER CONVERSATIONS (PRE- AND EARLY-INTIFADAH) HE WAS MUCH MORE DISMISSIVE OF THEIR POLITICAL STATUS IN THE TERRITORIES. END COMMENT. KURTZER |