14 June 2001

In the name of Allah the most Gracious the most Merciful

Political memo

On our stand towards western and American pressures

To abort our people’s intifada and resistance

To our steadfast and Mujahid Palestinian people

To our Arab and Islamic Nation that is watching the occupation’s atrocities

To the international community that is hoisting the banners of justice, freedom and human rights

Western, particularly American, efforts are ongoing these days in an attempt to abort our Palestinian people’s intifada under the guise of the so-called ceasefire. Western and American emissaries are flowing into the region in feverish efforts to pressure the Palestinian Authority to accept the Zionist dictates and conditions aimed at aborting our Palestinian people’s intifada and right to resisting occupation in addition to turning our people’s conflict with the Zionist entity into inter-Palestinian fighting.

The Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, would like to explain its stand towards those feverish efforts through the following points:

First: Despite the elapse of more than eight months on the occupation repression, under Sharon and earlier Barak’s governments against our unarmed Palestinian people and despite the martyrdom of more than 500 and the wounding of more than 25,000 of our unarmed people and the vast destruction caused by the mass destruction weapons and the internationally-banned lethal arms that resulted in destruction of houses, property and plantations yet those efforts did not intensify until our people’s intifada and their brave resistance started to drain the usurping enemy. Until fear and confusion were spread in the enemy lines especially after failure of Sharon’s aggressive plan to subdue our people and foil their comprehensive popular intifada and restore security to the Zionists.

This timing and this concentration of pressures on the PA only meant absolute support to Zionist aggression and occupation with all its beastly qualities and inhuman practices. This is refused on the part of our people of all walks of life and affiliations. Our people will not submit but would rather insist more than ever to continue the intifada and escalate resistance against occupation.

Second: Such feverish attempts and their proposals under the title of ceasefire are contrary to truth, justice and logic in addition to ignoring the core of our people’s cause. They also indicate blatant siding with the brutal occupation’s conditions. In this respect we would like to explain the following:

1- The ceasefire was a false and deceptive slogan for the crisis is not between two warring and neighboring parties so that it would be contained through ceasing hostilities. In fact it is an aggression by a ruthless occupying power against an unarmed people who are liable to the cruelest repressive measures and who are suffering from huge human and material losses. Occupation is the highest degree of terrorism, violence and aggression. The treatment should now focus on halting that aggression and ending occupation. Any other solution would never solve a crisis or lead to peace and stability. Talking about a ceasefire is a real disaster on our people because it would mean ending the intifada and resistance while retaining and protecting occupation in addition to wasting our people’s great sacrifices without any gains and aborting all intifada accomplishments and effects.

2- The international pressures that culminated with those of CIA chief George Tenet, on the PA to arrest intifada and resistance heroes and collecting their weapons along with banning any anti-occupation campaigns and resuming security coordination and cooperation (all being Sharon’s demands) clearly reflected the open American administration’s backing to this government against the PA and our people, who are the oppressed party. It is a biased and condemned stance that is not accepted by our people.

3- The Mitchell committee’s report was far from truth, oppressed our people and dealt with occupation through selective issues and that is why we along with our people’s forces rejected it. The international efforts emanated from that report despite the fact that George Tenet’s proposals overlooked the report’s point on halting Zionist settlements. Such a fact reveals that the report and the efforts of Tenet and the others, who visited the region at the advice of the American administration, were nothing but an obvious deceptive attempt to abort our Palestinian people’s intifada and end their legitimate anti-occupation resistance, which is a matter that cannot be sold to our people.

Third: The PA’s approval, under the yoke of pressures and fears of international embarrassment, of the Mitchell committee’s report, that was turned down by all sectors of our people via statements and massive marches of national and Islamic forces on numerous occasions, had encouraged or lured the international mediators to exercise more pressures on the PA, which is now in a very critical situation. Insinuations of accepting freezing of settlements in return for halting the intifada, based on Mitchell’s disastrous equation that aimed at ending our people’s intifada and inciting strife in their lines, had increased such pressures. The PA should be courageous enough and loyal to the blood and sacrifices of our people and stick to one demand that is departure of the occupiers from our lands, Quds (Jerusalem) and holy shrines. If the PA insists on this demand we, along with all our people’s forces, will be on its side on the basis of continuation of intifada and resistance until ejection of occupation.

The PA today must absorb past lessons and the intifada lesson. It should not deal with initiatives and projects that do not take into account our people’s rights in full headed by their unanimity on defeat of occupation. Our people’s sole option is continuation of the intifada and resistance of occupation and insistence on its expulsion from our lands. Whoever challenges this fact will be the loser.

Fourth: The international community must duly realize that the Sharon government is one of occupation, aggression, terrorism, strife and instability. This government does not hide its ugly face despite Peres’ talented roles or public relations profession. It declares ceasefire yet that government’s racist army daily murders our people’s women, children and elderly and its intelligence teams assassinate intifada activists and resistance fighters. Its settlers terrorize our people, demolish their houses and uproot their streets before the very eyes of the whole world. This government should not be dealt with in accordance with reason but rather on the basis of an occupation, expansionist and aggressive government. The only solution to spare the region and the world evils of its policies and aggressions is to exercise pressures on it through continuation of the intifada and resistance until it is forced to end occupation of our lands and holy places.

Fifth: We in the Hamas Movement along with all of our people’s forces  declare the following:

1- We condemn and reject George Tenet’s demands and declare that our people will foil them as they did with previous conspiracies. We also refuse any similar oppressive effort from a superpower or a friendly or sisterly country.

2- While realizing the international pressures on the PA, we do not agree with its approval on George Tenet’s proposals and denounce it. We affirm that such an approval does not bind our people’s national and Islamic forces or us. We urge the PA to revoke its stand and to turn down those pressures and proposals that only serve the enemy’s interests. We assert that the country, its future and people’s rights should not be for bargaining with any party regardless of its tyranny or threats. We underline that our people’s rights, interests, sacrifices and national unity should be taken into consideration rather than foreign pressures and the enemy’s threats, dictates and security priorities.

3- We affirm our people’s insistence on resisting occupation regardless of circumstances or conditions and announce, with the support of all our people’s forces, our persistence in the intifada and resistance program until defeat of occupation.

4- We, along with our Mujahid people and various factions, refuse under any pretext the return to the security cooperation and coordination march with occupation along with political and security arrests and disarming the people. Our people will never allow this to happen because that notorious march was a crime against our people, encroached on national unity and wasted all sacrifices and accomplishments over the past months.  Terrorist Sharon and his criminal government should know that their efforts and plots to drive wedges amongst our people and to convert the struggle into inter-Palestinian fighting would not succeed God willing. Our people with all its forces are well aware of such plots and are insisting on national unity that was endorsed in the Aqsa intifada. Sharon’s conspiracy will reflex on him and our people’s Mujahideen and resistance heroes’ reprisal would be violent against Zionist occupation. The resistance’s retaliation would be stronger whenever the enemy’s incitement increased.

Sixth: We laud the Arab and Islamic governments that supported our people’s right in persisting in the intifada and resistance until liberation of the lands and holy shrines and we urge all those governments to turn down and foil western and American mediations as long as they were not based on justice and right namely in ridding our people from occupation. We also ask them to clearly include protection and support of the intifada and resistance in their political programs and stands in its capacity not only as a Palestinian interest but also as an Arab and Islamic interest in face of the Zionist danger and ambition. We further invite our Arab and Islamic masses to intensify their activity and programs in solidarity with our people and in support of their intifada and resistance along with rejecting all projects aimed at aborting our people’s struggle and legitimate Jihad against occupation.

The Islamic Resistance Movement
Hamas – Palestine
22^nd Rabee Awal 1422H
14^th June 2001AD