ISLAMABAD, 31 January 2006 — Hamas could help bring peace to the Middle East and the international community should give the militant group a chance, Pakistan’s foreign minister said yesterday.
“Maybe Hamas is well qualified to bring peace to the region, but for that the international community must give it a chance,” Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri told the Institute for International Studies think tank in London yesterday.
Hamas is committed to Israel’s destruction and has carried out nearly 60 suicide bombings since a Palestinian uprising began in 2000. Since its sweeping election victory last week, Hamas has rejected calls to renounce violence against Israel.
The United States and the European Union are now reviewing their funding of the Palestinian Authority.
Members of the Middle East peace-broking Quartet — the European Union, the United Nations, the United States and Russia — were to meet in London later in the day to discuss whether isolating Hamas politically and financially is the best policy.
Kasuri said the West had called for democratic elections in the region, so it should accept the choice of the Palestinian people. “You cannot have your cake and eat it,” he said. “I think something positive could come out of it. Much depends on the Israeli elections (in March),” he said. “I hope the extremists do not win in Israel.”
Earlier, Pakistan hailed Hamas victory and termed the Palestinian elections free and fair.
Foreign Office Spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam said,”Palestinians used their right of franchise to elect Hamas. She expressed hope that even after Hamas victory the peace process in the Middle East will continue.
Tasnim Aslam said Pakistan’s policy viz-a-viz Middle East process remains unchanged.
