Carter offers to be communicator between Hamas, U.S., Israel

Tuesday 15th April, 05:27 AM JST

AIRPORT CITY, Israel —

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, defending a contentious plan to meet the leader of the violently anti-Israel Hamas, said Monday he hoped to become a conduit between the militant group and Washington and even Israel.

Isolating Hamas is counterproductive, Carter said, giving voice to a sentiment that is gaining credence among respected U.S. figures. Hamas rules Gaza but is ostracized by Israel, the U.S. and Europe as a terror group.

“I think it is absolutely crucial that in the final and dreamed-about and prayed-for peace agreement for this region that Hamas be involved and Syria will be involved,” Carter told a business conference outside Tel Aviv.

“I can’t say that they will be amenable to any suggestions, but at least after I meet with them I can go back and relay what they say, as just a communicator, to the leaders of the United States,” he said.

The U.S., EU and Israel have both blacklisted Hamas for its history of suicide bombings against Israel and its refusal to renounce violence and recognize the Jewish state. Israel’s top leaders, in a stinging rebuff, are boycotting Carter during his visit, in part because he plans to meet later in the week in Syria with exiled Hamas supreme leader Khaled Mashaal.

In Washington, U.S. State Department spokesman Tom Casey told reporters Monday that the U.S. has “made clear our views that we did not think now is the moment for him (Carter) or anyone to be talking with Hamas.”

The U.S. would be “happy to hear” Carter’s reflections on his visit with Hamas, but it would not likely change the administration’s views on the militant group, Casey said.

Carter also offered to relay Hamas’ views to Israel.

If the U.S. agrees to hear what Hamas says, “I hope then the Israeli government will deign to meet with me—they have so far refused,” he said.

President Shimon Peres, Israel’s ceremonial head of state, is the only leader who has met with Carter since he arrived on Sunday. Peres, a fellow Nobel Peace Prize laureate, criticized Carter for planning to meet with Mashaal, calling it a “very big mistake,” a Peres spokeswoman said.

A schedule released by Carter’s aides showed no plans for talks with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni or Defense Minister Ehud Barak.

The cold shoulder is a highly unusual brush-off to a former U.S. leader—especially one so closely linked to Mideast peacemaking.

Carter brokered Israel’s historic peace accord with Egypt in 1979, the first treaty it signed with an Arab country. But his popularity hit bottom in Israel since he published a book two years ago drawing comparisons between Israeli policies in the West Bank and Gaza and apartheid in South Africa. The planned talks with Mashaal have only fueled the Israeli discontent.

In an interview with the Israeli daily Haaretz published Monday, Carter said he intended to use the Mashaal meeting to press for return of three Israeli soldiers captured by Hamas and the Lebanese Hezbollah militia. He said he would also try to get Hamas to accept an Arab plan for peace with Israel.

“The most important single foreign policy goal in my life has been to bring peace to Israel, and peace and justice to Israel’s neighbors. I have done everything I could in office and since I left office to do that,” the paper quoted Carter as saying.

Also Monday, Carter toured Sderot, the southern Israeli town targeted most frequently by Palestinian rocket squads operating from Gaza. He was shown a house badly damaged by a rocket strike and piles of rusting projectiles collected after hitting the town. More than 1,000 rockets have exploded in Sderot over the past year.

“I think it’s a despicable crime for any deliberate effort to be made to kill innocent civilians, and my hope is there will be a cease-fire soon,” Carter told reporters.

Sderot Mayor Eli Moyal said he met with Carter to present Israel’s side, even though he said he was “upset” about Carter’s scheduled meeting with Mashaal.

“I don’t think he should meet with killers,” Moyal said.

Carter left Sderot with a gilded rocket fragment presented to him by town officials.

The former president’s nine-day Mideast peace mission will also take him to the West Bank, Egypt, Syria, Saudi Arabia and Jordan. He will not be visiting Hamas-ruled Gaza.

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Latest 15 of 17 Total Comments Show All

skipthesong at 12:23 PM JST - 15th April

“I don’t think he should meet with killers,” Moyal said.

What Moval needs to understand, the new world order is that if the said people are poor and desolate, they can only be considered fighters of oppression and should be rewarded..
sabiwabi at 12:48 PM JST - 15th April

Skip

the only thing Carter could possible do to bring peace to the area is rid it of Jews

Seems the policy Zionist have used for over 6 decades of ridding the region of Muslim and Christian Arabs hasn't brought much peace, so your idea might be worth a try.
skipthesong at 04:06 PM JST - 15th April

sabi, look at your post again. Re-read it to yourself about 20 times..

As for any idea of such being tried, look at a few history books - it has been tried and to counter your claim, I have yet to meet, or read, or hear of any Jews advocating killing all the Muslims but I have hear otherwise from Muslims for years...
sabiwabi at 06:19 PM JST - 15th April

skip,

As for any idea of such being tried, look at a few history books

Yes, the Bible mentions something about them being evicted from the region, or something like that.

I have yet to meet, or read, or hear of any Jews advocating killing all the Muslims...

You might want to start paying attention then. You've missed much of what has been going on for a long time.
adaydream at 02:11 AM JST - 16th April

Considering Carter is responsible for some of the billions of dollars Israel gets in aid from the United States

Those dollars are all spent a long time ago on weapons to kill Paletinians. It's the SBillions that have been given since then. Hell they just received $30,000,000,000.00 that george bush gave them that we need to worry about.
Helter_Skelter at 09:32 AM JST - 16th April

Carter also offered to relay Hamas’ views to Israel.

Hamas's views? That's easy. They want to carry on the Nazi tradition the Muslim Arabs helped establish during WWII of making all land Judenfrei. You can trace the roots of Hamas back to the Muslim Brotherhood and their collaboration with Nazi Germany. I would hope Carter would relay these views.
sabiwabi at 10:47 AM JST - 16th April

Helter, Jews get along fine in Muslim countries. Why do you keep writing that? Was it a joke?
kinniku at 11:11 AM JST - 16th April

Jews get along fine in Muslim countries. Why do you keep writing that? Was it a joke?

Yes, good question Sabiwabi. Why do you keep writing that Jews get along fine in Muslim countries? Is it a joke? Maybe it is that you have never actually visited a Muslim country or read a newspaper from these countries. However, considering you don't seem to think Hitler had such a big hate for the Jews, one can see how anything better than the Nazi's treatment would seem 'fine' to you.

As far as the bleating about extremists, both sides have them. My frustration comes from the lack of a loud and clear vocal peace movement among the Muslim community. I know they exist, but their voices are not raised clearly and cohesively. Before you attempt to claim that Israel does not have such a voice, let me give you examples: B'Tselem and Peace Now. Where are these same organizations in the Muslim community. No, I am not expecting there to be a Palestinian organization peace organization while they are under occupation, however where is the rest of the Muslim community. Do they really see Hamas' current stance as helpful?

Anyway, as I pointed out before, it is just because of Carter's recent "anti-Israeli" comments that he may be the only western public figure to be able to convince Hamas to take the serious steps needed to get on the road to a real peace of mutual existence of Israel and Palestinian states side-by-side.

In addition, hopefully, if Carter were to be successful, the peace obtained would be a true 'warm' peace as opposed to the 'cool' peace between Israel and its Jordanian and Egyptian neighbors.
Helter_Skelter at 01:11 PM JST - 16th April

Helter, Jews get along fine in Muslim countries.

LOL!
sabiwabi at 06:45 PM JST - 16th April

Helter,

Go ahead and LOL. More and more people are catching on. World public opinion is FINALLY shifting against Israel. And no, that is not antisemitism!

They might not realize it, but Carter is doing Israel a favor.
Helter_Skelter at 06:21 AM JST - 17th April

World public opinion is FINALLY shifting against Israel.

World opinion is FINALLY beginning to realize that Islam is a threat to the civilized world. That Israel is just another victim of Islamic violence and intolerance. But the world had better wake up soon or we'll be living dark ages once again.
sabiwabi at 09:53 AM JST - 17th April

That is indeed the impression the media has been trying to give us. Fortunately, people are wising up, and starting to realize what is really going on.
kinniku at 11:02 AM JST - 17th April

What is going on here is that certain people with obvious anti-Semitism are trying to convince us their view of the world is correct. While there can certainly be a great difference between anti-Semitism and anti-Israeli sentiment, it is obvious that on one should not take the words of a blatant anti-Semite seriously when it comes to their comments about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This is just as true of comments made by blantant anti-Muslims.

The only people who can be taken seriously are the ones who are willing to see both sides of the issue and who are sincere in their wish for the prosperity and happiness of both Israelis and Palestinians living peacefully side-by-side in their own countries.

In this regard, you do not make the grade.
sabiwabi at 11:11 AM JST - 18th April

Kinniku,

Oh my! So if a family barges into your home, kills your wife, rapes your daughter, destroys the garden you use to feed your family, and locks you into the basement, "the only people who can be taken seriously are the ones who are willing to see both sides of the issue and who are sincere in their wish for the prosperity and happiness of both" families "living peacefully side-by-side in their own countries"?

You have a complete lack of perspective and your attempts at appearing sincere are amazing. This is not a simple dispute between two groups, like two families fighting over where the fence should go.
kinniku at 05:21 PM JST - 18th April

My statement above stands. You want there to be continuous war. I want peace between these people. Your example is meaningless in this conflict and just encourages more of the same. This is a simple dispute between two groups. It is time to ignore the voices of extremism such as yours and take real steps towards peace.