Obama asks for modification in US law to talk to Hamas

[ 29/04/2009 - 08:39 AM ]

LOS ANGELES, (PIC)--

The American Los Angeles Times newspaper said on Monday that the administration of US president Barack Obama has requested the Congress to induce modifications in the US law in order to help it in dealing with a PA government comprising ministers from Hamas Movement.

Present laws prohibit any direct dealing with Hamas Movement until the Movement bows to the US demands, including recognizing the Zionist state, renouncing "violence" (the derogatory term for resistance to the illegal foreign occupation), and recognizing all agreements signed between the PLO and the Israeli occupation government, which Hamas had firmly rejected.

The US administration described those changes as part of the additional expenditure law with nearly $ 83.4 billion that also finances the American forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.

According to the paper, the law includes also around $ 840 million to the installed PA government of Mahmoud Abbas allotted for the reconstruction of the devastated Gaza Strip.

The Obama administration, the paper added, wants to help soothe the human crises in Gaza Strip but "doesn’t know how" due to the ban put on dealing with Hamas Movement.

However, the paper alleged that the proposed changes might not be used because talks between Hamas and the US-backed Fatah faction in Ramallah have perhaps reached a deadlock

Nevertheless, the paper underlined that the mere request of the Obama administration to inject legal changes into the law shows that the Democrats team in the White House was more "sympathetic" with the Palestinians than the Republican George W. Bush.

The paper quoted Republican legislator Mark Steven Kirk as saying that the proposal looks like "supporting a government that includes members Nazi members".

But other US officials opined that the new suggestion doesn’t mean recognizing Hamas or helping it, but rather, they said, it reflects the difficulties faced by the US administration in sponsoring peace in the Middle East.

Obama has repeatedly reiterated his support to establishing a Palestinian state; but the paper underscored that peace couldn’t be achieved in the region without Hamas that won the PA legislative elections in 2006.

Furthermore, the American paper revealed that the step has irked members of the Israeli lobby in the US congress, adding that a state of anxiety was engulfing the Zionist entity over possible US recognition of a PA government with members from Hamas Movement.

In this regard, the Hebrew Ha'aretz newspaper pointed out that the IOA was surprised by the step, adding that the first messages from Washington weren’t talking on changing policies, but they were talking on a change in the language used over the issue of the PA unity government.

Hebrew sources pointed out that Israeli premier Binyamin Netanyahu plans to discuss the matter with Obama during his visit to the White House in June.