Israel Matzav: Hamas leader claims to have met with Obama administration officials about removing their terror label

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Hamas leader claims to have met with Obama administration officials about removing their terror label

Hamas leader Ghazi Hammad has told 'Palestinian' media that 'top American representatives' were present at a meeting held two weeks ago with European officials about removing Hamas' designation as a terror organization.

The officials discussed removing Hamas from the list of designated terrorist organizations, but that "these contacts have not yet reached the level of decision-makers," Hamad said in a Sky News Arabia report translated by the Investigative Project on Terrorism. The alleged meeting has not yet been reported in Western media.

I have video of Hamad's interview in Arabic. I'm going to post it on the off chance that someone who reads this blog speaks Arabic and will have something to add. I also have a summarized Google translation of it from Quds Net that I will post after the video.

Let's go to the videotape.

And here's the summarized translation (Hat Tip: MFS - The Other News).

[Hamad said] “held a series of meetings in a number of Arab capitals with European officials and Americans, most recently about two weeks ago, and was speaking it is no longer any legal justification and political survival of the Hamas terror list, “but said that” these contacts have not yet reached the level of decision-makers.”

During a meeting with a number of journalists in Gaza, said Hamad, the decline of the relationship between Hamas and Tehran “significantly”, against the backdrop of the movement’s position in support of the Syrian people in their intifada Current against President Bashar al-Assad. said: “The relationship with Iran is difficult and dropped a lot,” but he expressed the hope “not up the relationship with Iran to the stage of estrangement.” and renewed Hamad position of the Gaza government of non-interference in the affairs of Egypt, saying: “Although The presence of the Muslim Brotherhood in power, we did not seek at all to intervene in the affairs of Egypt in any way, however we are exposed to a smear campaign big.

” and added that his government has “information and data are many, and documents confirm who was behind the pumping media, both on the Palestinian level or Egyptian, “adding that” none of the Egyptian officials did not provide evidence of the involvement of Hamas in security issues in Egypt. ” also rejected Hamas media reports in Egypt recently on the possible role of the movement in the internal affairs of Egypt, especially in the face of protests Egyptian opposition scheduled for June 30. denied Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri, the validity of such reports and confirmed that the movement “has not and will not be a party to the internal political affairs of Egypt, and they stand by Egypt Political with all its components.

Obama has still not given up on bringing Hamas in from the cold. What could go wrong?

Labels: Barack Hussein Obama, designated terror organization, Hamas