The Hamas-led Palestinian government is weighing softening its stance toward Israel to ease isolation but not without concessions from the Jewish state and the international community, Hamas officials said yesterday. They said ideas such as a 2002 Arab peace initiative, UN resolutions on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and the Palestine Liberation Organization’s national agenda — all of which include recognition of Israel — were on the table. One expert on Hamas said any softening would not involve a shift in ideology, but be a way to try to get Western aid restored to the Palestinian Authority and heal a growing rift with President Mahmoud Abbas over government powers. | What's the Arabic phrase for "lip service"? |
Deputy Prime Minister Naser Al-Shaer, an influential leader of the group and who is close to Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh, told Reuters that several ideas were being considered and would be discussed over the coming days.
“No decision has been taken yet,” Shaer said. “It is very clear the world wants a certain political price or certain position from this government. What is this position, to what extent can this position be reached?”
Added Nayef Al-Rajoub, minister of religious affairs: “We are studying and considering all kinds of proposals, including the Arab peace initiative... but that doesn’t mean we have accepted anything yet.” |