Instability to persist if Hamas rules Gaza: Israel

JERUSALEM

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar warned on Jan. 19 that the Middle East would remain unstable if the Palestinian militant group Hamas remained in power in the Gaza Strip.

“If Hamas will stay in power, the regional instability it causes might continue,” Saar said at a press conference.

Speaking as a ceasefire went into effect in Gaza, Saar said Israel was committed to achieving all the goals of its war against Hamas, including dismantling its governmental and military capabilities.

If the international community wanted a permanent ceasefire, he added, then it must include the dismantling of Hamas as a military power and ruling entity in Gaza.

His statement came after Palestinian leaders who administer parts of the Israelioccupied West Bank said that they are ready “to assume full responsibility” in the Gaza Strip.

President Mahmoud Abbas’ office said the Palestinian Authority’s administrative and security agencies finished preparations to restore critical services in Gaza, which has been controlled by Hamas.

But there’s still no plan for who will govern Gaza after the war.

Israel has said it will work with local Palestinians who are not affiliated with Hamas or the Western-backed Palestinian Authority. But it’s unclear if such partners exist and Hamas has threatened anyone who cooperates with Israeli forces.

The Palestinian Authority controlled Gaza before Hamas violently expelled it in 2007, a year after winning a landslide victory in Palestinian elections.