Israel should be wary of Hamas' truce proposal

The Israeli public is not the only group awaiting the election results for the 20th Knesset. Hamas is also in suspense over the results. Previously when it came to Israeli election campaigns, Hamas’ spokesmen always said that it made no difference to them who would be elected to lead the “Zionist enemy.” Times, however, have changed, and Hamas' leaders are begging for help.

The living conditions in Gaza are incredibly severe, in fact, worse than ever; the reports emerging from the Gaza Strip are appalling. In the meantime, Hamas leaders await to learn the composition of Israel's next government to try to determine which policy it will adopt toward the movement.

In contrast to Israeli citizens, who will vote on March 17, the residents of Gaza, suffering under the Hamas regime after it won elections in 2006 and later seized control, do not have the basic right to choose between re-electing or rejecting the movement that has led them to the edge of the abyss. Although Hamas was chosen in democratic elections, it subsequently trampled every possible vestige of democracy in the Palestinian system. Now it seeks a magic solution that will enable the movement to continue to rule, and in effect survive. Hamas well understands that if there is not a dramatic change in the situation in Gaza, it will likely not manage to hang on much longer.

Hamas knows that salvation will not come from Egypt, because Cairo has declared Hamas to be a terror organization. Even Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas, who at times seemed ready to offer Hamas life support, recently has not lifted a finger. In fact, Abbas has distanced himself from Gaza to the extent that at the end of February, five major European Union countries — France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy and Spain — protested to senior officials in Ramallah that the PA is not doing enough to advance the reconstruction of Gaza, as the situation continues to deteriorate by the day.