JUST GOVERN WELL:

Hamas candidate speaks of future talks with Israel (Arnon Regular, 1/15/06, Haaretz)

"We'll negotiate [with Israel] better than the others, who negotiated for 10 years and achieved nothing," Sheikh Mohammed Abu Tir, second on the Hamas national list for the Palestinian parliamentary election, told Haaretz recently.

Abu Tir does not dismiss future negotiations with Israel. He makes a great effort to explain to Israel and the world, which are attempting to come to terms with his organization's expected good showing in the elections later this month, that Hamas is playing by new rules.

According to Abu Tir, the movement's decision to enter the elections - as well as the decision to remove from its election platform sections in its constitution calling for Israel's destruction - are not only tactical measures. Rather, they represent a strategic shift.

So long as they recognize that all that's left of negotiations is accepting the state they've been offered.

Posted by Orrin Judd at January 15, 2006 1:23 PM