19 June  2001

In the name of Allah the most Gracious the most Merciful

 Memo on Jordanian authorities insistence on detaining

Brother Ibrahim Ghoushe in Amman Airport

To the esteemed leaders of:

Parties, movements, syndicates and political and public opinion forums

Assalamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh

While our Palestinian people’s Jihad is ongoing and their brave intifada is approaching its tenth month, the Zionist occupation is still practicing utmost degree of repression and terrorism against our people. This calls on our Arab and Islamic Nation, governments and peoples, to side by our people: defending and supporting their resistance with all means available especially when that resistance was offering one martyr after the other to liberate the holy lands and to defend the Nation and its holy shrines.

At this historic and sensitive stage we were surprised at the Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, with the Jordanian authorities’ detention of brother Ibrahim Ghoushe at the Amman Airport preventing him in the process from returning to his country from his forced exile in the Qatari capital Doha.

We present you with this memo to explain the surrounding conditions and indications of that denounced Jordanian decision. To explain the situation we would summarize our viewpoint in the following points:

1- The crisis dates back to 21 months ago after an unjustified decision of the government of former premier Abdul Raouf Al-Rawabde closing down information offices of the Movement and arresting and prosecuting a number of its leaders and sympathizers. The government then decided to deport five of the Hamas Movement’s political bureau members from Jordanian territory. The government then attributed its measures to a number of justifications that were neither credible nor realistic. All Jordanian parties, political and syndicate organizations along with the Islamic and national figures in that country rejected the measure in its capacity as contravening to the Jordanian constitution and international law other than harming national Jordanian and pan-Arab interests. The rejection emanated from the conviction that the measure was in response to Zionist and American pressures on the Jordanian government.

2- The Movement did not spare any effort to solve the crisis and its negative repercussions through adopting flexible stands towards all Arab mediation initiatives in a way taking into consideration Jordan’s circumstances and interests and at the same time preserving the Movement and the brothers’ right of citizenship and duty to work for their country and cause. However, the Jordanian government closed all doors before dialogue, negotiations and rational solutions. It opted to escalating the situation, turning down all initiatives and insisted on its stand of rejecting return of the brothers to Jordan. Thus it led the internal Jordanian situation into an ordeal that the Jordanian government could have been spared other than worsening relations with a sisterly Arab country.

3- The Movement expected a positive change in the Jordanian government’s policy with the advent of the new government of Ali Abul Ragheb towards the issue of the deportees especially in the light of our people’s intifada and the terrorist Sharon’s government’s terrorism and repression. Yet the new government chose to follow the path of Rawabde’s government in its irrational dealing with the issue at a time when it was keen to maintain strong relations with the government of terrorist Sharon through retaining his embassy open under Jordanian security protection.

4- The brothers the chairman and members of the political bureau’s right to Jordanian citizenship and return to their country was guaranteed by the Jordanian constitution and international law. This citizenship is a genuine one since establishment of the Kingdom following the 1951 unity between the east bank and west bank, which fell under Zionist occupation while under Jordanian sovereignty. It is thus a citizenship not to be stripped via a ministerial decision under pressure by enemies of our Nation and their allies.

5- It is no secret to all the nature of the inter-mingled Jordanian-Palestinian relationship as a result of the historical and geographic character of both countries. Furthermore, the de facto Palestinian political endeavor in Jordan refutes the Jordanian government’s pretexts for its measures. Most Palestinian organizations are present in the Jordanian arena while carrying the Jordanian nationality. There are even some members of the Jordanian parliament who are at the same time members in the Palestinian national council and in Palestinian organizations. They occupy political positions in those organizations. There are also ministers in the Palestinian Authority who are still carrying Jordanian citizenship and live with their families in Jordan.

6- Bargaining with the deported brothers on surrendering either their Jordanian nationality or political role in the Movement is extremely serious and is rejected at the same time. There is no conflict between both matters for working for the Palestine cause via the Hamas Movement or any other organization is a legitimate national duty on each and every Arab and Muslim not speaking about the Palestinian. It is not permissible under any circumstances to deprive the Palestinian and Arab citizens from their natural right of citizenship because they shoulder their duty towards the Nation’s central cause and conflict with the Zionist enemy.

7- Brother Ibrahim Ghoushe’s step in exercising his right of returning to his country would have been open for a solution if the Jordanian government had dealt with the matter in a rational way especially when the constitution guarantees him this right of returning to his country whenever he wishes. Yet the Jordanian government violated this right through detaining  and depriving him from entry. Nonetheless, the Jordanian government still owns the key to that problem namely by allowing him and his brothers to enter their country and live there among their people and families.

8- To affirm Hamas Movement’s keenness on unity of Arab ranks, it welcomes any constructive effort based on the return of Eng. Ghoushe to his country along with his deported brothers especially when we showed enough flexibility and took into consideration the general interests of Jordan, our cause and our Nation as a whole.

Esteemed leaders of parties, syndicates and organizations:

We table these events and facts before you to put you before your national and pan-Arab responsibilities. We hope that you would shoulder your duty towards this issue. Your support to the deported brothers’ right of return to their country to serve their people and cause with all available means would serve as a solid support to resistance and Jihad in Palestine in addition to our Palestinian people and other peoples of our Nation’s endeavor for the sake of the Palestine cause. It would further deepen the basic and important Arab role towards Palestine in its capacity as the question of All Arabs and Muslims and in its capacity as the foremost defense line of the Nation and its civilization project in face of the Zionist project.

We pray for your constant support to our people’s Jihad and our Nation

The Islamic Resistance Movement
Hamas – Palestine
19/6/2001