Are Hamas and Fatah Falling in Love Again ?

Liz Taylor and Richard Burton did it, Natalee Wood and Robert Wagner did it, now the question becomes will Hamas and Fatah decide to get married again? According to IDF sources the two terrorist groups have toned down their battles and their rhetoric lately, this could be a signal of an impending reconciliation.

So what happens if these two love birds get back together? Well for one thing all of the cash and weapons now going to Fatah become "community property." Oh and the weakening economic boycott against Hamas will become totally dead. There is no way that Europe will stop its aid to any government that includes Abbas. The spigot is on, and they aren't turning it off.

If Fatah reunites with a now emboldened Hamas it will cause a worsening of the crisis in the region. Except for Israel, there will be nothing standing in the way of Hamas trying to implement its plan of creating a fascist Islamic government throughout the Middle East.

Fatah and Hamas Searching for Ways to Collaborate Again

by Nissan Ratzlav-Katz

(IsraelNN.com) Despite the complete Hamas takeover of Gaza and the Fatah suppression of Hamas in Judea and Samaria, including heavy violence and mutual accusations of illegitimacy, the two Palestinian Authority terrorist organizations may be moving towards a renewed cooperation. This, according to IDF analysts, can be seen in the cessation of Fatah activity against Hamas in Judea and Samaria. Abbas seems to have ceased anti-Hamas efforts in areas still under his control.

The intelligence assessment was presented on Tuesday to the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee by Brigadier General Ronen Cohen of IDF Intelligence (known by its Hebrew acronym, AMAN). IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi was also on hand to discuss the intelligence report, after having received a subcommittee study regarding the training of the military's officer corps.

"Despite the brutal process Gaza has gone through," Brig. Gen. Cohen told the Knesset committee, "Hamas aspires to return to a dialogue with regional Arab states, such as Egypt and Syria, as well as with [PA Chairman and Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas]."

For his part, Abbas seems to have ceased anti-Hamas efforts in areas still under his control, Cohen reported: "The Palestinian Authority acted during the first few days [after the Hamas coup in Gaza] against the Hamas in Judea and Samaria. That activity has declined in recent days, until we see no further activity in that direction."

Chief of Staff Ashkenazi added his own comments during the intelligence briefing, saying, "Over time, a situation of dialogue between Abu Mazen [Abbas] and [Hamas's Damascus-based chief Khaled] Mashaal will develop, with the two organizations finding a way to maintain contact, as they have a common national interest."

General Ashkenazi noted that the military was not surprised by the events in Gaza last month, as "it was clear that there would be further rounds between Fatah and Hamas." The ongoing internecine warfare flared into the Hamas takeover of Gaza despite the short-lived unity government Fatah and Hamas had established just a few months earlier.

"According to AMAN's assessment," Brig. Gen. Cohen explained, "preparations can be made for the existence of two [PA] entities for a long period of time. In central Gaza, Hamas is now in control, with an Islamic regime that will try to prove to the people that it is not corrupt and that it is attentive to the private citizen. The primary challenge of Hamas is stable internal security in the Strip."

As Hamas establishes itself further in Gaza, the IDF intelligence officer continued, "its ability to transmit information, money and weapons will grow and it will increase its military strength. The long-term goal of Hamas is to spread the Islamic regime over the Gaza Strip."

As for outside Gaza, Brig. Gen. Cohen said, "In our estimation, Hamas can rejuvenate
"The long-term goal of Hamas is to spread the Islamic regime over the Gaza Strip." - Brig. Gen. Cohen
itself in Judea and Samaria. It mustn't be forgotten that [Hamas] won the elections in all of the large cities [of those regions], and that, at the moment, what prevents the entrenchment of Hamas in Judea and Samaria are IDF and General Security Services (GSS) operations, carried out over the years."

As Hamas tries to stabilize the situation it has created, according to AMAN, the terrorist organization has decided on a policy of limited attacks around and in the Gaza region. Such attacks include roadside bomb detonations and gunfire primarily targeting military positions and outposts.

Despite the apparent lessening of tensions between Fatah and Hamas, Israeli and PA security officials met on Monday, after a two year hiatus, to "discuss how to move forward with security cooperation," according to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's spokeswoman Miri Eisen.