UK MPs urge talks with Hamas

UK MPs urge talks with Hamas

Brown's government says it is open to talks with  Hezbollah, but not with Hamas [Reuters] British legislators have urged the government to talk to moderates within Hamas, saying the West's policy of shunning the Palestinian group was showing little sign of success. Russia is the only member of the Quartet of Middle East peace brokers, which also comprises the United States, the United Nations and the European Union, talking to Hamas. The British parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee said in a report on Sunday it stood by a recommendation it first made two years ago that the government should engage politically with moderate elements within Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip. "We conclude that there continue to be few signs that the current policy of non-engagement is achieving the Quartet's stated objectives," the committee said. "We further conclude that the credible peace process for which the Quartet hopes, as part of its strategy for undercutting Hamas, is likely to be difficult to achieve without greater co-operation from Hamas itself." Incentives The committee, made up of MPs from all the main political parties, said it was dismayed that, six months after the end of fighting in Gaza, there was still no ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas. There had been little change to several issues that contributed to the conflict, it said. "We conclude that this situation makes for an ongoing risk of insecurity and a renewed escalation of violence," it said. The committee said it was concerned the Quartet was failing to provide Hamas with greater incentives to change its position. It said Britain should talk to Hamas moderates as a way of encouraging the group to meet the Quartet principles. Prime Minister Gordon Brown's government changed policy in March by saying it was open to talks with the political wing of Lebanon's Iranian-backed Hezbollah, but it remains opposed to talking to Hamas. Israel invaded Gaza on December 27, 2008 and fighting continued until January 18, 2009, killing more than 1,000 people.

Source: Agencies