To say the least, the election of a terrorist organization in Palestine is cause for concern — for Israelis and for the rest of the world. With anti-Semitism at a level the world hasn’t seen since the Holocaust and Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad making threatening remarks about Israel on a seemingly daily basis, the election of Hamas, a group sworn to Israel’s destruction, would seem to give little hope to the prospect of peace in the Middle East.
Yet there may be more than a silver lining in this situation. Yes, the Palestinians freely elected a group that has terrorized the Israeli people for years. But Hamas also has to prove itself as a legitimate governing body, and this process may end up shifting the group away from its extremist past.
Hamas campaigned on the grounds that it would put an end to the corruption-riddled Fatah party and provide basic services to Palestinians desperate for economic reform; in the weeks and months leading up to the election, Hamas downplayed its history as a terrorist organization and instead emphasized the bread and butter issues.
Now Hamas is accountable to its constituents. If it does not deliver on the promised reforms, it will eventually be voted out of office. And accountability can go a long way toward moderating a group that has had little reason to be moderate until now.
The United States and other Western nations should also hold the new Palestinian government accountable — and this does not mean adhering to Bush’s “no negotiations with terrorists” mantra. The United States should negotiate with Hamas because, like it or not, Hamas now represents the average Palestinian. No longer does it exist on the fringe, as al-Qaeda, Islamic Jihad and others do.
If, however, suicide bombers start to pop up after a few months of relative peace in the region, the West should hit Hamas with sanctions, and hit it hard. Bush can show that he will not tolerate terrorist activities while still acknowledging the right of Palestinians to have a functioning government that is not isolated from the outside world. Economic sanctions on Hamas will make it difficult for Hamas to deliver on its promises of reform and increased prosperity to the Palestinian people. It is in the groups’ best interests to refrain from further attacks on Israelis, because to do so would only spell doom for the prospects of success for the new government.
Destroying Israel is not number one on most Palestinians’ list of priorities; instead, their chief concern is merely improving their standard of living. Hamas can accomplish this, and in doing so achieve legitimacy as a governing body — but only if it promotes moderation over extremism.