With Hamas, Actions Still Speak Louder Than Words

In the Nov 1 New York Times Op-Ed pages, Ahmed Yousef, a senior adviser to the Palestinian prime minister and Hamas political leader, Ismail Haniya, writes what at first glance would seem to be a welcome overture to peace.

He states that “Hamas proposes a long-term truce during which the Israeli and Palestinian peoples can try to negotiate a lasting peace”, a “hudna” to “bring about an immediate end to the occupation and to initiate a period of peaceful coexistence during which both sides would refrain from any form of military aggression or provocation.” He calls for “a 10-year hudna during which, inshallah (God willing), we will learn again to dream of peace”.

I read his piece closely, set the paper down, and then read it again, even more carefully. Being the moderate, peace seeking individual I am, I asked myself whether this proposal would begin to shake the trees of stagnation in the Middle East, if the peace process which is going nowhere might be given a kick start by Yousef’s article. Might this be the beginning of some sort of cessation of violence between Hamas and Israel?

But then I remembered the age old saying that actions speak louder than words. If Yousef is right that “this offer of hudna is no ruse, as some assert, to strengthen our military machine, to buy time to organize better or to consolidate our hold on the Palestinian Authority” then why is Israel at this very moment forced to destroy tunnels used by Hamas to smuggle weapons into Gaza from Egypt? Why are Israeli residents of Sderot and the Western Negev still bombarded by Kassam rocket from Gaza?

Yousef writes “when Hamas gives its word to an international agreement, it does so in the name of God and will therefore keep its word”. The only words Hamas has provided to any international agreements are “Not” and “Never”, as in Hamas will not recognize Israel, Hamas will never end their attacks on the Jewish state and Hamas will not accept past agreements with Israel.

Herb Keinon, the Jerusalem Post Diplomatic Correspondent, last night gave a talk in San Francisco, and when asked about Yousef’s Op-Ed, he smiled, thought about his response for a moment and then remarked that it was nice to see such words in print, but what really matters is how Hamas acts. When they stop trying to kill us, Keinon said, then their words may mean something.