Hamas: Terrorists Who Govern Like Terrorists (UPDATED)

Apparently the pundits--and apologists--had it wrong. Being in a position of authority has not tempered Hamas. On the contrary, it has given the world the opportunity to see Hamas for what it is. Terrorists who are given the opportunity to govern--govern like terrorists.

Here are 3 summaries from the press, provided by Daily Alert. In the third article Hamas accuses Fatah of doing the same.

Hamas' New Order Exacts Toll on Gazans - Scott Wilson
Facing money shortages, a shrinking private sector and growing political resistance, Hamas leaders in Gaza are increasingly imposing harsh interpretations of Islamic law and using brute force to bolster their isolated administration, which remains illegitimate in the view of Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah and his U.S.-backed government in the West Bank. Reconciliation between the two largest Palestinian parties - now running parallel governments in what had been envisioned as the two territories of a Palestinian state with a single government - appears as distant as when Abbas dissolved the Hamas-led power-sharing government after the fighting in June.

Gaza's streets have taken on an increasingly Islamic cast in recent months. The improved everyday security has brought people back to the markets, beaches and parks, many of them women wearing for the first time the full black gown, gloves and face covering favored by the most conservative Muslims. After Friday prayers in recent weeks, Fatah supporters have marched through Gaza's streets in protest against the Hamas administration. "Shia! Shia!" the demonstrators shouted, an insulting reference to Hamas' inflexible Islamic character and financial support from the Shiite government of Iran. Their numbers have swelled into the thousands, and Hamas' patience appears exhausted. The Palestinian Scholars League, an Islamic council dominated by Hamas clerics, issued a fatwa early this month prohibiting outdoor prayer. (Washington Post)

See also Fatah Takes Battle with Hamas to Mosques - Hossam Ezzedine
Palestinian security officers have stepped up surveillance of mosques in the West Bank and preachers caught spouting Hamas propaganda will be sacked, said one security official. Fatah accuses Hamas of recruiting supporters and stockpiling weapons in mosques. There are 1,547 mosques in the West Bank. Thanks to the imams and preachers, Hamas "controls" most mosques in the West Bank, the security official believes. Even in Abbas' base of Ramallah, Hamas controls "more than 70%" of the mosques, he said. (AFP/Yahoo)

See also Hamas: Palestinian Security Services Raiding Mosques in the West Bank (Maan News-PA)

Check out Noah Pollak's post on Contentions on why Hamas is in no hurry to change:

In many ways Hamas has been emboldened by the continued arrival, regardless of its terror war, of foreign aid money and water and electricity from Israel. Hamas, in other words, has been given the ability to run a consequence-free jihad.

The only good news to come out of all this is that at least for now, the movement to “engage” Hamas—most popular in Britain and Europe—has fallen into dormancy. Such calls might be revived as planning for the Bush administration’s regional conference intensifies, but the Hamas leadership may yet prove to be so ideologically stubborn and politically obtuse that even people like Daniel Levy and Colin Powell will not be able to help.

Read the whole thing.

Technorati Tag: Hamas.