The following is research published today, from the MEMRI Inquiry & Analysis Series and TV Project. To view more from the Palestinian Media Studies Project, visithttp://www.memri.org/palestinianmediastudies. Inquiry & Analysis No. 788—Palestinians/Inter-Arab Relations By: L. Barkan* In late December 2011, Hamas prime minister in Gaza Isma'il Haniya made an official tour of the region that included visits to Egypt, Sudan, Turkey and finally Tunisia. This was his first official trip abroad since the Hamas takeover of the Gaza Strip five years ago. Especially noteworthy was his five-day visit to Tunisia, on which Haniya was accompanied by 20 of his government officials, and which came in response to an invitation by the new Tunisian government, headed by Hamadi Al-Jabali of the Islamist Al-Nahda party. Haniya was the first leader to visit Tunisia after the establishment of the new government there. He was greeted at the airport by Tunisian Prime Minister Al-Jabali, government ministers, and Al-Nahda party chairman Rached Al-Ghannouchi, and was received by an honor guard and a band playing the Palestinian and Tunisian anthems – honors usually reserved for visiting heads of state. During his visit, Haniya met with Prime Minister Al-Jabali, President Munsif Al-Marzouqi, government ministers, Constituent Assembly Chairman Mustafa bin Ja'far, and senior Al-Nahda officials, including Al-Ghannouchi. In his meeting with the president, Haniya invited him to visit Gaza and the latter accepted the invitation. Haniya toured several cities and visited a number of mosques, and delivered a Friday sermon to an audience of thousands at a mosque in Kairouan. In the capital Tunis, he was granted the special honor of attending the conversion ceremony of a Frenchwoman converting to Islam. Haniya's Tunisian hosts expressed their belief in the legitimacy of the Hamas government and Haniya as its head. Hamas, for its part, indeed regards the visit to Tunisia, and the entire regional tour, as an indication of its growing acceptance in the Arab and Muslim world. Haniya stressed that the tour broke the political and economic siege on Gaza, and emphasized the connection between the Tunisian and Palestinian revolutions. He promised to continue on the path of jihad and resistance, and to refrain from recognizing Israel or relinquishing a single inch of Palestinian soil. The visit was criticized by elements in the PA, who complained that the Tunisian authorities had disregarded them and failed to inform them about it in advance. It was also criticized by Tunisian opposition circles, which claimed that it constituted rapprochement with one Palestinian side only, and also a crossing of boundaries between the Al-Nahda party and the new Tunisian government. The tour elevated Haniya's status from a local leader concerned mostly with Gaza affairs to a central Hamas figure capable of enlisting political and economic support in the Arab and Muslim world. Indeed, Haniya may be poised for promotion within the movement. In mid-January 2012, shortly after his return from his tour, Hamas announced that the head of its political bureau, Khaled Mash'al, had asked not to run again for this post in the elections slated for the middle of the year. Haniya has been mentioned as one of the figures who might replace him (as well as Mash'al's deputy Moussa Abu Marzouq, based outside of Gaza, and senior Hamas official in Gaza Mahmoud Al-Zahhar). If Haniya is appointed to this post, i.e. if he becomes Hamas' political leader, the main weight of the movement leadership may shift to Gaza, which is likely to impact its status as a movement that purports to represent all the Palestinians – in the Palestinian territories, inside Israel and in the diaspora. It is also likely to impact the power balance between Hamas-Gaza and Hamas-Damascus, the latter of which, according to reports, is seeking an alternative location in light of the instability in Syria. To read the full report, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/6015.htm. MEMRI TV Clip No. 3275 Following are excerpts from a statement by PA Mufti of Jerusalem Sheikh Muhammad Hussein, which aired on Palestinian Authority TV, on January 9, 2012: Announcer: "[I invite] the honorable sheikh, Sheikh Muhammad Hussein, the Mufti of Jerusalem and the Islamic lands. His words are necessary because our war with the descendants of apes and pigs is a religious war of faith." To view this clip on MEMRI TV, visit http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/3275.htm.Isma'il Haniya's First Regional Tour Transforms Him into Regional Palestinian Leader;
PA Mufti of Jerusalem: The Muslims Will Kill the Jews before Judgment Day
MEMRI Daily: January 23, 2012
Isma'il Haniya's First Regional Tour Transforms Him From Hamas PM in Gaza to Regional Palestinian Leader
Haniya with Tunisian President Al-MarzouqiPA Mufti of Jerusalem Muhammad Hussein: The Muslims Will Kill the Jews Before Judgment Day
Monday, 23 January 2012
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