RAMALLAH, March 28: Hamas on Tuesday won the overwhelming backing of Palestinian lawmakers for a government already given the cold-shoulder by Israel and the United States. The vote of confidence in the 24-member cabinet was passed by 71 votes to 36 of those lawmakers present after a long and fiery debate on the government’s political platform presented by prime minister Ismail Haniya.
The line-up now needs to be rubber-stamped by Palestinian Authority president Mahmud Abbas who has demanded changes to Hamas’s hardline platform but is in no real position to veto the government.
The vote was little more than a formality given Hamas’s huge majority and the administration may take office as early as Wednesday, two months after the Islamist movement’s landslide election victory on January 25 that sent shockwaves through Israel and the West.
Mr Haniya, whose group has carried out dozens of suicide bombings in Israel over the past decade, stressed the Palestinians were entitled to continue the struggle for independence but also spoke of his desire to hold talks with international players to end the conflict with the Jewish state.
And he took a swipe at Washington Tuesday after it rebuffed his offer of negotiations.
“I deeply regret that the American administration has been so quick to make this decision. This once again shows how they (the Americans) side with the Israeli occupation against the Palestinian population,” he said.
Mr Haniya’s programme also came under fire from lawmakers representing the once dominant Fatah party, which was routed by Hamas in the Jan 25 election.
“The speech was ambiguous and paid no account of the remarks of president Abbas,” who has called on Hamas to respect previous agreements with Israel, said Fatah deputy Mohammed al-Lahham.
Another Fatah deputy told parliament that Mr Haniya’s programme was thin on details.
“I have been looking at the programme but I have found nothing in there about the resistance nor negotiations,” said Walid Assaf.
Mr Haniya on Monday said his government would ‘spare no effort to reach a just peace in the region, putting an end to the occupation and restoring out rights’, but he rejected international demands to respect past peace agreements.
Israel warned it would have no choice but fix its borders unilaterally if the incoming government sustained Mr Haniya’s policy. The United States also insisted that Hamas first meet internationally demanded conditions.
Israel has refused to deal with a Hamas-led government and has imposed sanctions, including travel restrictions, which forces MPs in the Gaza Strip to participate via video link with the Ramallah-based parliament.
But while holding off any suggestion of negotiating with Israel, Mr Haniya welcomed the prospect of continued international involvement in the peace process, in particular from the Middle East quartet.
The quartet — the European Union, Russia, the United Nations and the United States — is the sponsor of the largely moribund roadmap peace plan which aims for the creation of an independent Palestinian state alongside a secure Israel.
Both the United States and European Union have threatened to slash funding to the Palestinian Authority unless Hamas recognises Israel, commits itself to non-violence and respects past international agreements.
Despite winning big in the elections, Hamas has struggled to garner broad-based support. Only a smattering of independents have agreed to join the cabinet, including Christian tourism minister Joudeh Morqos. —AFP
