Hamas Adviser Writes Letter to Obama

In summary, a Hamas adviser wrote a letter to Obama but Hamas says the adviser is a fringe guy, so the letter doesn't represent Hamas (Hamas has fringe folks?), but no one knows what's in the letter, which was given to John Kerry, visiting the Gaza Strip, who passed it on to the U.S. Consul General in Jerusalem, who will pass it on to Washington.

JERUSALEM, Feb 20 (Reuters) - A Hamas adviser reached out to U.S. President Barack Obama in a personal letter that was passed from a top U.N. official to a high-ranking U.S. senator during a rare visit to the Gaza Strip, officials said on Friday.

The enclave's Hamas rulers disavowed the letter, which the U.S. consulate in Jerusalem will send on to Washington for review.

It was the first known overture of its kind since Obama became president last month, but it is unclear whether it will reach him. A U.S. boycott of Hamas has not changed under the new administration.

Karen AbuZayd, head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), gave the letter addressed to Obama, along with other materials, to Sen. John Kerry, who heads the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, during his brief visit to the Gaza Strip on Thursday.

Committee spokesman Frederick Jones said Kerry left Gaza and only learned later about the origin of the letter after media reports quoted AbuZayd and other U.N. officials as saying it had been written by Hamas.

UNRWA said the letter had been left by Hamas at the front of its compound in Gaza City. UNRWA officials had no immediate comment on why Kerry had not been told directly that the letter had been sent by Hamas.

A Palestinian official familiar with the matter said the letter was authored by Ahmed Youssef, a Hamas foreign ministry adviser, and that he acted on his own behalf, rather than as a representative of the Islamist group which rules the Gaza Strip.

Youssef has made appeals to Western leaders in the past to try to soften their opposition to Hamas, which the United States and the European Union consider a terrorist organisation. Read the rest.

Peacemaker George Mitchell Headed to Israel

Bloomberg: President Barack Obama is sending George Mitchell, his Middle East envoy, to the troubled region this week as the new U.S. administration seeks to broker peace between Israel and the Palestinians, a White House adviser said.

Mitchell is charged with the immediate task of facilitating a lasting cease-fire between Israel and the Palestinian militant Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip. The former Senate Democratic leader will probably leave Washington tomorrow, according to the adviser, who asked not to be identified.

Obama has pledged to renew the U.S.’s broader commitment to the peace process, including a separate Palestinian state alongside Israel.

Mitchell, who has negotiating authority in his role as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s top diplomat for Mideast peace, is set to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Jan. 28, the Associated Press reported, citing an Israeli foreign ministry official it didn’t name.

Hamas Calls Cease Fire

Yesterday Israel called a cease fire and today Hamas did as well. This is great news!

REPORTING FROM JERUSALEM -- Hamas replied to Israel's unilateral cease-fire in the Gaza Strip today by announcing that it and its allies would also hold their fire.

The Hamas leadership in Syria said its own unilateral cease-fire was taking place immediately. The Islamic militant group gave Israel a week to pull its troops out of the Palestinian territory.

Israel halted its 22-day assault on Gaza early today, saying it would keep its forces in place for now. Israeli leaders have not said when the military will withdraw, although they insist Israel has no interest in staying. "We'll play it day by day," government spokesman Mark Regev said after the Hamas announcement. LAT

From Haaretz:

The Israel Defense Forces began a partial withdrawal of ground troops from the Gaza Strip on Sunday evening, hours after ending a three-week offensive on the Hamas-ruled coastal territory.

The move also came shortly after Gaza's Hamas rulers announced a one-week
cease-fire, despite continuing rocket fire on southern Israel.

The IDF would not say how many troops it is pulling out, but Channel 10showed tanks rolling out and smiling infantry soldiers walking toward the border. Some ground forces remained at key points in Gaza amid the withdrawal.

"I can confirm that a gradual withdrawal of our forces is under way," a military source said, refusing to elaborate on when the pullback might be completed. Israel declared a truce early on Sunday that was matched hours later by Gaza's Hamas leaders.

Israel Lets Up on Gaza Calls Cease Fire

All is quiet. For now. Hopefully, Hamas will stop as well.

"Hamas has been dealt a very serious blow," Olmert said. "We can say that the conditions have been brought about that enable us to say that the aims that we laid down for the operation have been completely achieved."

Yet Israel is prepared to respond if Hamas militants continue fighting in the Palestinian territory, Olmert said.

"If foes decide to continue to fight against us, then we will be ready and we shall consider ourselves justified in replying," he said. "I do not suggest that Hamas or other terrorist organizations try us."

Immediate Palestinian response to Olmert's announcement was pessimistic.

Saeb Erakat, the chief Palestinian negotiator involved in diplomatic talks on the conflict, noted that Olmert did not say Israeli troops would be leaving Gaza.

"I'm afraid this means the cease-fire will not stand; it will break," Erakat told CNN International. "Anybody can fire a shot now. ... It's a very fragile moment."

The announcement followed a Cabinet meeting Saturday meant to vote on the basics of a plan that could end fighting in Gaza. It also came a day after Israeli and U.S. diplomats signed an agreement designed to stop arms smuggling into the Palestinian territory through tunnels. CNN

Jewish newspaper Haaretz hopes that Obama won't wag his tail for Israel:

You, Barack Hussein Obama, are our last chance, and if that too fades - and evil is determined against us, all hope is lost.

We are the prisoner who is stuck in a cell; without the help of others, we will never succeed in extricating ourselves from the bonds of our natural fear and the historical accounting. And there are no "others" except for America, for which no substitute has been found, even in its time of weakness.

The Israeli politicians - the singers of all the wars - will try to feed you "direct negotiations" and "without external pressure;" these refrains are groundless. Ask your advisers, Dennis Ross and Dan Kurtzer and Martin Indyk, and they will tell you.

They were sold the same stories for too many years. Have they learned their lesson? I wish I was sure of that. After all, under their noses settlements and outposts cropped up and multiplied like poison mushrooms after a shower of government promises. And if it turns out as time goes on that those advisers haven't learned anything and have forgotten everything, you will be better off doing without their services before they cause you to fail as well, and rush to write their belated memoirs and insights.

And don't get too upset by the Israeli lobby in Washington, whose voice is that of Benjamin Netanyahu and not necessarily the voice of Jacob, nor is it the representative voice of the large Jewish community in America. It is hard to be black, who knows as well as you; it is hard to be a Jew, we know; and it's somewhat easier to be a professional Jew in the Diaspora of Washington, D.C., who is more of an Israeli patriot than many Israelis, and no less of one than Evangelist clerics, who are preparing from afar for Armageddon.

Terrorism is the Military of Countries That Cannot Afford a Military

That's a potent observation.
Today, 77 palestinians were wiped off the map, many children. I wonder if the Israelis and Palestinians, and the U.S. for that matter, will ever realize that no one ever wins a war.
More from Zoriah Miller, a photojournalist who specializes in showing how war affects people:

Palestinians and Hamas leaders living in the Gaza Strip believe it is their right to defend themselves from Israel, who they see as agressors. Many Palestinians see no difference between a Palestinian suicide bomber detonating themselves on bus and a high-tech Israeli rocket landing in one of their schools. Both result in the loss of human life, many being civilians. On my first trip to Gaza a man told me something that has stuck with me, "Terrorism is the military of countries that cannot afford a military." There are always two sides to every story. With both sides labeling each other the agressor, vowing to cease fire only after the other side does, it seems to be a desperate situation that will, as usual, make innocent individuals pay the highest price.

This is horrifying:

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Will Obama Get Tough On Israel?

No one says we have to quit Israel. We just have to be reasonable about solving the conflict there. Bush's I'm-With-Israel is not foreign policy.

Newsweek: The issue at hand is to find the right balance in America's ties with Israel. Driven by shared values and based on America's 60-year commitment to Israel's security and well-being, the special relationship is rock solid. But for the past 16 years, the United States has allowed that special bond to become exclusive in ways that undermine America's, and Israel's, national interests.

If Obama is serious about peacemaking he'll have to adjust that balance in two ways. First, whatever the transgressions of the Palestinians (and there are many, including terror, violence and incitement), he'll also have to deal with Israel's behavior on the ground. The Gaza crisis is a case in point. Israel has every reason to defend itself against Hamas. But does it make sense for America to support its policy of punishing Hamas by making life unbearable for 1.5 million Gazans by denying aid and economic development? The answer is no.

Reid in Synch With Bush Administration on Gaza

Senator Harry Reid reiterated on Meet the Press that the U.S. stands by Israel, no questions asked. Meanwhile, the rest of the world has called for a cease fire.
Reid said Israel gave Gaza to the Palestinians in an effort toward peace and all it got in return was rocket fire from Hamas, which matches exactly what Israel's foreign minister Tzipi Livni said (that video here).
Reid even said he agreed with Bush on this issue (later Reid went on to reiterate that Bush is the worst president ever).
The two religious groups will go on hating each other for eternity unless someone can figure out a genius way to tackle that region. I'm not sure if Obama's policy will be radically different. There's too much inertia against solving the problems there. 
In the meantime, Israel says it's not planning to retake the Gaza Strip but they may as well:

NYT: “We don’t plan to retake the Gaza Strip but there are several places we control now and will control later,” he said. “If it will be needed, we are prepared to stay there.”

The military has warned that the campaign could take “many long days.”

The full Meet the Press webcast. Reid talks about Israel in the beginning:

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White House: Gaza Doesn't Need Aid

Where is George Bush? Oh, that's right. He's still on vacation considering his legacy. In the meantime, the White House spokesman says the U.S. has seen aid flow into Gaza and says Hamas is hording the aid, and essentially, the White House says Not My Problem - I'm With Israel.
Seems to me that simply siding with Israel every time there is a conflict really isn't a foreign policy. That's kind of easy to do. It's loser foreign policy. Hamas may be scourge of the Earth but Israel is creating more problems down the road for EVERYONE by pounding Gaza.
Can't wait til the Bush administration is swept out of the White House. See the video.

Activists in Hawaii Urge Obama To Rethink Mid East

See Cornell West's really good advice to Obama on tackling the MidEast and more advice from retired Gen. Anthony Zinni to engage Hamas early. Obama has said that he will engage early but he hasn't said how.

I'm hoping Obama won't be anything like Bush on dealing with this problem, which is going to take Courage, especially since he'll have to contend with the busy wingnuts still saying Obama's a stealth Muslim terrorist. 

HA: Eight activists marched with signs to the edge of the property's security perimeter, telling reporters that they want the incoming administration to take a fresh look at the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian territories, especially given the current fighting in the Gaza Strip. They also said Obama needs to take a more active role in the conflict, even though he doesn't take office until Jan. 20.

"We feel there's a great need for change. We need to stop giving Israel a blank check to do what it's doing," said Margaret Brown, a 66-year-old Honolulu resident who held a handmade sign that read "Yes we can change U.S. policy toward Israel and Palestine."

"We just gave them a blank check to oppress the Palestinians, and this is the result," she said.

Israel continued its air attacks on Gaza on Tuesday and warned that a ground invasion could follow if rocket launches didn't stop. The United States has called for the militant group Hamas to stop launching rockets into Israel.

More advice. This makes sense:

Mid-East About to Self Destruct

Unfortunately, civilians sometimes pay the price, says Tzipi Livni, Israel's foreign minister, shrugging. What happens when they're done blowing each other to smithereens? More terrorism crops up, more poverty, more unrest.



Protests and background on Gaza and Hamas, the elected leaders of Gaza:

Response to Israeli's attacks:

Welcome to Gaza

For Obama Everything's on the Front Burner

Why do reporters and pundits keep insisting that Obama will have such and such, pick your choice, on the front burner? Everything is going to be on the front burner. He'll have a big enough staff, one that's bright and efficient. Why can't the Obama administration pay attention to all of it at once?

Politico: Israel’s continuing attacks on Gaza serve as a reminder that President-elect Barack Obama and his nominee to be secretary of state, Hillary Rodham Clinton, will not get to choose the world they inherit Jan. 20.

The incoming administration had planned to focus on the economic crisis and recalibrating U.S. policy in Iraq and Afghanistan in its early months — but the Israeli assault on Hamas may have instantly changed that calculus.

"For all the talk of putting the [Middle East] conflict on the back burner, it's going force itself onto the front burner," said Daniel Levy, a fellow at the New America Foundation. Levy said that if the conflict in Gaza is still ongoing when Obama takes office, he will face regional and international pressure to broker a settlement.

"It could involve the administration very early,” Levy said.

Dec. 28 Meet the Press: Bush Will Be Judged Harshly

Israel's foreign minister Tzipi Livni says Hamas is to blame and don't you forget it. Israel attacked Gaza Strip after 2 weeks of rocket fire attacks by Hamas, which rules Gaza Strip. Haaretz, an Israeli newspaper, says that Israel has been planning the attacks for 6 months. Haaretz is also reporting that Hamas has threatened to kill Livni and Ehud Barak, Israel's defense minister. 

ABC: The Israeli Army says that over the last week militants have fired 300 rockets or mortars at targets in Israel. One Israeli died in a rocket attack on Saturday according to a report by the Associated Press.

Israel's response of killing nearly 300 people, many civilians, seems a little over the top. The New Republic says no it wasn't. 

Livni said it's acceptable for Hamas to stay in power if it accepts the requirements of the national community -- to accept Israel's right to exist. Hillary! We need your tenacity in the Mid-East.

David Axelrod was also on the show. David Gregory tries to squeeze something new out of him on Blago, taxes and Rick Warren, to no avail.

During the roundtable, it is a foregone conclusion, Bush really blew it (contrary to what Condi Rice says) and his lack of smarts ruined a lot of people's lives. But we can't really blame Bush because we elected him. Going forward, I'm hoping that we will be very careful about who we elect as leaders. It seems the election of Obama set a new tone, which says America is awake. Reset. 

Watch the whole show:

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Some facts about Hamas:

Here are some facts about Hamas:

CAPABILITIES:

* Hamas is believed to have thousands of short-range rockets, as well as scores of longer-range Grad rockets that could strike Israeli population centers up to 40 km (25 miles) from the border with the Gaza Strip.

* Hamas is believed to have a limited number of shoulder fired missiles that could be used against helicopters or slow moving planes, but has little defense against Israel's force of fighter jets, the most technologically advanced in the region.

* First deployed on the streets of Gaza in May 2006, Hamas's main security apparatus, initially dubbed the Executive Force, has grown from an estimated 3,000 members to more than 13,000, divided in several security branches. At least 180 of Hamas's security men were killed in Israel's air strikes.

* Hamas's main security force has grown since its takeover of the Gaza Strip in June 2007, in part because the Islamist group has money to pay salaries. The core of the force is mostly members of the Hamas armed wing, the Izz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigades, but it includes some members from allied militant factions such as the Popular Resistance Committees. More

Obama's Monitoring Gaza Strip Attacks

MSNBC: GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Israeli warplanes retaliating for rocket fire from the Gaza Strip pounded dozens of security compounds across the Hamas-ruled territory in unprecedented waves of airstrikes Saturday, killing more than 200 people and wounding nearly 400 in the single bloodiest day of fighting in years.

Most of those killed were security men, but an unknown number of civilians were also among the dead. Hamas said all of its security installations were hit, threatened to resume suicide attacks, and sent at least 70 rockets and mortar shells crashing into Israeli border communities, according to the Israeli military. One Israeli was killed and at least six people were hurt.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Saturday blamed Hamas for breaking a cease-fire with Israel.

"The United States strongly condemns the repeated rocket and mortar attacks against Israel and holds Hamas responsible for breaking the cease-fire and for the renewal of violence in Gaza," Rice said in a statement.

"The cease-fire should be restored immediately," she said.

"The United States calls on all concerned to address the urgent humanitarian needs of the innocent people of Gaza."

The assault on Gaza could harm stalled talks over Palestinian statehood.

I'm so tired of the Middle East. I sure hope Hillary can play a big part in creating some form of long-lasting peace there. If not peace, tolerance. Hillary seems like the right person to dig in there.

CBS: As the events unfold on the Gaza Strip, with Israeli planes attacking Hamas-controlled security compounds and Hamas vowing revenge, vacationing President-elect Barack Obama is keeping his own counsel.

“President-elect Obama is closely monitoring global events, including the situation in Gaza, but there is one president at a time," said Brooke Anderson, Mr. Obama’s chief national security spokesperson. Obama will be receiving an intelligence briefing today and the White House will stay in touch with the transition team, according to White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe.
......

In July 2008 Obama gave an indication of his views on the Israel-Palestine conflict.

Obama views Hamas as a terrorist organization and as far as I know, he hasn't made clear how he might approach the Mid-East, other than tackling the problem as a regional issue, bringing all the neighboring players and other stakeholders to the table.
Contrary to what the right wingers have said, Obama doesn't consider Hamas a state and therefore, wouldn't meet with them as he would meet with Iran's leaders. Obama condemned Jimmy Carter's meeting with Hamas.
Obama was a co-sponsor of the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act of 2006,
That's all I know.
Read what Obama wrote about his foreign policy:

or more than three decades, Israelis, Palestinians, Arab leaders, and the rest of the world have looked to America to lead the effort to build the road to a lasting peace. In recent years, they have all too often looked in vain. Our starting point must always be a clear and strong commitment to the security of Israel, our strongest ally in the region and its only established democracy. That commitment is all the more important as we contend with growing threats in the region -- a strengthened Iran, a chaotic Iraq, the resurgence of al Qaeda, the reinvigoration of Hamas and Hezbollah. Now more than ever, we must strive to secure a lasting settlement of the conflict with two states living side by side in peace and security. To do so, we must help the Israelis identify and strengthen those partners who are truly committed to peace, while isolating those who seek conflict and instability. Sustained American leadership for peace and security will require patient effort and the personal commitment of the president of the United States. That is a commitment I will make.

Throughout the Middle East, we must harness American power to reinvigorate American diplomacy. Tough-minded diplomacy, backed by the whole range of instruments of American power -- political, economic, and military -- could bring success even when dealing with long-standing adversaries such as Iran and Syria. Our policy of issuing threats and relying on intermediaries to curb Iran's nuclear program, sponsorship of terrorism, and regional aggression is failing. Although we must not rule out using military force, we should not hesitate to talk directly to Iran. Our diplomacy should aim to raise the cost for Iran of continuing its nuclear program by applying tougher sanctions and increasing pressure from its key trading partners. The world must work to stop Iran's uranium-enrichment program and prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. It is far too dangerous to have nuclear weapons in the hands of a radical theocracy. At the same time, we must show Iran -- and especially the Iranian people -- what could be gained from fundamental change: economic engagement, security assurances, and diplomatic relations. Diplomacy combined with pressure could also reorient Syria away from its radical agenda to a more moderate stance -- which could, in turn, help stabilize Iraq, isolate Iran, free Lebanon from Damascus' grip, and better secure Israel.