SPD politician Roth fears new Hamas power center
Hamas controls the Gaza Strip, Fatah the West Bank - that has been the situation up to now. According to SPD foreign affairs expert Roth, however, the latter's support is waning. He fears that Hamas could also gain strength in Hebron and the like. Elections could prevent this.
The SPD politician and Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the Bundestag, Michael Roth, has warned of the consequences of a takeover by the radical Islamic Hamas in the West Bank. There are signs that the power of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank is on the verge of collapse, Roth told the Bild newspaper. "A Hamas takeover would be fatal: with Hamas terrorists in power, peaceful coexistence with Israel will not be possible in either Gaza or the West Bank," he added.
"In parts of the West Bank, the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority under President Mahmoud Abbas has long since lost control and is considered corrupt, inefficient and weak," said Roth. After 7 October, the situation in the West Bank will also remain "explosive", Roth emphasized.
Unlike the Gaza Strip, the West Bank is controlled by the Fatah movement of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Since the beginning of the war between Israel and Hamas, more than 190 Palestinians have been killed in the area by the Israeli army or radical Israeli settlers, according to Palestinian figures. The Israeli army justifies its increased operations and raids in the West Bank with a "significant increase in terrorist attacks".
No elections for 15 years
However, Roth also concedes: "We don't know at the moment how strong or weak support for Hamas and Fatah really is among the Palestinian population". That is why he would like to see elections in the Palestinian territories: "The last elections were more than 15 years ago. After the end of the war, the Palestinians must finally be given the opportunity to freely decide their own fate again."
On 7 October, hundreds of fighters from Hamas, which is classified as a terrorist organization by the USA and the EU, entered Israel from the Gaza Strip and committed atrocities, mainly against civilians, including many women and children. According to the Israeli government, around 1,200 people were killed and around 240 people were taken hostage in the Gaza Strip.
In response, Israel began to massively attack targets in the Gaza Strip from the air and on the ground. According to Hamas, which cannot be independently verified, more than 15,000 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip since then.
- Despite controlling the Gaza Strip, Hamas has been aiming to increase its influence in Fatah's stronghold, the West Bank, a prospect that SPD politician Michael Roth finds concerning, as peaceful coexistence with Israel may become impossible if Hamas gains power there.
- The ongoing suspension of elections in the Palestinian territories for over 15 years has left political power dynamics ambiguous, making it unclear whether the support for groups like Hamas or Fatah in the West Bank significantly changed since the last elections.
Source: www.ntv.de
