Despite Election, Hamas Is Still a Terrorist Organization

Nov. 22, 2006 — -- Since the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) garnered 44 percent of the vote in the Palestinian legislative elections last January, critics of the Bush administration have consistently demanded that Washington "recognize" the organization.

These critics argue that the Palestinian elections were the freest and fairest in the Arab world (true), that the outcome reflects the "will of the Palestinian people" (false), and that Hamas provides social services to Palestinians in need (irrelevant).

Those advocating recognition of Hamas based on these three criteria are engaged in an analytical sleight of hand.

The fact that a given organization that has historically engaged in terrorism participated in an election and continues to undertake relief work does not necessarily mean that it can no longer be considered a terrorist group.

Indeed, supporters of recognition have never offered a compelling argument to support the contention that by dint of its electoral gains and charity work, Hamas should no longer be considered a terrorist organization.

Moreover, there is no serious scholarly work arguing that electoral participation, charity work and terrorism are mutually exclusive.

To deny that Hamas is a terrorist group is an ideological position rather than an analytical conclusion based on an honest consideration of the evidence.

What supporters of recognition tend to neglect is the violent imperative that gave impetus to Hamas' founding.

In the mid- and late 1980s, members of the Palestine branch of the Muslim Brotherhood were concerned that an organization called Islamic Jihad was gaining nationalist prestige among Palestinians at the Brotherhood's expense, because of Jihad's use of violence against Israelis.

For these members of the Brotherhood, the solution to their political problem was the establishment of Hamas.

This new organization would continue the Brotherhood's historic mission of Islamization of society through good works, but it would also include a military wing to perpetrate terrorist acts against Israelis in an effort to burnish the group's nationalist image thereby outmaneuvering Islamic Jihad in the Palestinian political arena.

Thus, the founding covenant of Hamas is explicit in its mission to liberate all of historic Palestine using a variety of tactics including violence.

Steven A. Cook is the Douglas Dillon Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. This essay is part of a debate series being sponsored by IQ2 US, in New York on Nov. 29, 2006. For more information visit www.iq2us.org