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MEMRI Daily: May 27, 2011

Special Dispatch No. 3873—Hamas/Jihad and Terrorism Studies Project Hamas Foreign Liaisons Chief Osama Hamdan: Armed Confrontation Will Continue To Be 'Backbone of the Resistance'; The Israelis Must Return To Their Countries of Origin Following are excerpts from an interview with Hamas Foreign Liaisons chief Osama Hamdan; the interview aired on Al-Jadid/New TV on May 4, 2011: To view this clip on MEMRI TV, visit http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/2949.htm. Osama Hamdan: "Instead of one party negotiating and another conducting resistance, both parties – or rather, all the Palestinian forces – will operate within the single framework of confronting the Zionist entity, and this will not be an easy battle." To read the full report, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/5325.htm. Inquiry & Analysis No. 692—Syria/Democratization and Reform in the Arab and Muslim World/Inter-Arab Relations/The U.S. and the Arab and Muslim World/Europe and the Arab and Muslim World Syrian Oppositionists: We're Getting No Support for Our Struggle Against the Regime By: N. Mozes* Introduction After two months of violent unrest in Syria, and despite the erosion of its status in the region among the Arab countries, and in the international arena, it appears that the regime of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad has so far managed to contain the protests, or, at the very least, to keep them from spreading. This is due, inter alia, to the harsh security measures, including the cordoning off cities and areas where protests are taking place, as well as key areas, such as Damascus; the violent dispersal of protests using tanks and snipers; sweeping arrests; and a media blackout on the unrest. The regime is also attempting to win over the street, or at least to keep support for sympathizers at home to a minimum by delegitimizing the protests on the claim that they are being carried out by extremist Islamist elements linked to an international conspiracy to harm Syria; by promising reforms; and by portraying itself as willing to engage in national dialogue. It is also offering economic benefits and is strengthening ties with tribal dignitaries and leaders across the country. As the Syrian regime faces its toughest challenge since the Hama massacre in the 1980s, oppositionists in Syria and abroad are attacking the international community, the Arab League, the Syrian intelligentsia, and the Syrian media, which they blame for allowing the regime to continue in its violent repression. To read the full report, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/5326.htm. Special Dispatch No. 3872—Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor/Jordan Leading Jordanian Salafi-Jihadi: We Support the Coups in the Arab World – Even Though We Strive for More Radical Change Note to media and government: For a full copy of the article, send an email with "Leading Jordanian Salafi-Jihadi" in the subject line to media@memri.org. Please include your name, title, and organization in your email. On April 24, 2011, the Jordanian daily Al-Sabil published an interview with 'Abd Al-Qader Shhade, AKA Abu Muhammad Al-Tahawi, a senior Salafi-jihadi sheikh in Jordan. The interview was conducted on April 13, two days before he was arrested after participating in a Salafi-jihadi demonstration outside the 'Omar ibn Al-Khattab Mosque in Al-Zarqa province after Friday prayers. In the interview, Al-Tahawi expressed support for the revolutions in the Arab countries, though he added that they met only some of the aspirations of the Salafi movement – the final aim of which is to institute Islam worldwide. He added that it was not desirable for the Salafi streams to cooperate with secular ones or to allow the latter to lead the public, because they represented only a small minority of Muslim communities. He stressed that even if the majority did not adhere to the tenets of Islam, the Salafi-jihadi movement would not recognize the legitimacy of such a majority, and would work with all its might to change its perception. Tempering this statement, he clarified that the Salafi-jihadi stream is not out of touch with the public, and that if its influence has declined it was only because the tyrannical regimes prevented it from conveying its ideas to the masses. Al-Tahawi mentioned that the Salafis are demonstrating to demand the release of their detainees and prisoners, and fighting corruption, suppression, and the brutality of the security apparatuses. He emphasized that "all of these demands have one thing in common – imposing the Islamicshari'a," because "the rule of Islam will solve all our problems." The full text of this report is available to MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor subscribers. Subscription information is available athttp://subscriptions.memri.org/content/en/member_registr_jttm.htm. To read the full report, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/5327.htm.