David Ignatius says Secretary of State John Kerry has made a “significant mistake” in a “misconceived” and undermined our “traditional allies” in his “shortsighted” effort to pursue a “short-term deal” with Hamas. To which I ask, tell us how you really think:
Kerry’s error has been to put so much emphasis on achieving a quick halt to the bloodshed that he has solidified the role of Hamas, the intractable, unpopular Islamist group that leads Gaza, along with the two hard-line Islamist nations that are its key supporters, Qatar and Turkey. In the process, he has undercut not simply the Israelis but also the Egyptians and the Fatah movement that runs the Palestinian Authority, all of which want to see an end to Hamas rule in Gaza.
Ignatius hasn’t written a Rah Rah Israel piece, either — he also has critiques of Israel’s military and PR campaigns.
What’s left unsaid however is why Kerry would bolster Hamas at the expense of more moderate regimes in Egypt, the West Bank, and Jordan. It would seem to me to come down to either ego, ignorance, or malice. Or knowing John Kerry, all three.
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