Jordan's King left red faced after Hamas slip-up at Davos

With world leaders and financial bigwigs gathered for the World Economic Forum in the Swiss resort of Davos this week, the pressure was on to impress. Jordan’s King Abdullah II, one of the Forum’s honored speakers, seemed to have a keen grip on global economics but was left more than a little confused by politics on his doorstep.

<snip>

His hopes for peace in the disputed land stemmed from a belief that the Palestinian Islamist movement, Hamas, was relenting on its anti-Israel policies. When they first came to power, Hamas insisted that they would never recognize Israel as a legitimate country in its current form.

However, they had more recently softened on their policy and appeared to be ready to live peacefully next to their hated Jewish neighbors.

The King said the group were “being a bit more realistic” and claimed Hamas was more open than ever before to engage in dialogue with Israel.

But Jordan’s monarch was soon made to eat his words when Hamas shot down his hopeful claims point blank.

According to Palestine Today, on Saturday night Hamas’ spokesman, Yahya Moussa al-Ebadsh, said the group’s relationship with Israel has not and will not change.

“The only relationship with this enemy is the resistance,” he said.

The statement put pay to any ideas of getting Israel and the Gazan leaders around the negotiating table. Next time perhaps the King will consult with Hamas before putting forward their position at International Forums.

http://www.albawaba.com/editorchoice/davos-jordan-hamas--466580