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ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Meanwhile, sources close to the Hamas-led government claimed that Hamas representatives recently held talks with officials from the US Democratic Party at a secret location."
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1164881833834&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
Dec. 6, 2006 19:38 | Updated Dec. 6, 2006 19:42
Hamas smuggled $66 million in 8 months
By KHALED ABU TOAMEH
Hamas officials have managed to smuggle more than $66 million in cash through the Rafah border crossing in the past eight months, a member of the Hamas-led government revealed Wednesday.
Meanwhile, sources close to the Hamas-led government claimed that Hamas representatives recently held talks with officials from the US Democratic Party at a secret location.
The sources told the Bethlehem-based Maan News Agency that Hamas representatives have also been holding secret talks with European government officials, including Britain and France.
Palestinian Authority Planning Minister Samir Abu Aisheh of Hamas said the cash that was brought by Hamas officials was handed over to the PA Finance Ministry. He also revealed that the Hamas-led government has managed to pay 69% of the salaries to the PA's 160,000 civil servants during the same
period.
Altogether, the Palestinians have received $318 million in international aid since Hamas took over despite international sanctions imposed on the Palestinians, the minister said, noting that most of the money was channeled through the office of PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.
This is the first time that a senior Hamas official reveals the total sum of money that has been smuggled into the Gaza Strip through the Rafah border crossing. Several Hamas ministers, legislators and officials have managed to smuggle suitcases full of millions of dollars through the border crossing.
The most recent case occurred last week, when PA Foreign Minister Mahmoud Zahar returned from a 14-day Arab and Islamic tour carrying $20 million in cash. A week earlier, two Hamas legislators arrived at the Rafah border crossing each carrying $2 million in cash.
The report about contacts between Hamas and American and European officials comes in the wake of the breakdown of negotiations between Hamas and Abbas's Fatah party over the formation of a Palestinian unity government."
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Thanks for a Special Emailer for pointing to this article:
http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=17858
"Europe is softening its stance towards Hamas,
a governmental source claims"
Date: 06 / 12 / 2006 Time: 16:53
Khan Younis - Ma'an -
ARTICLE SNIPPET: "In the American arena, the source said that Hamas has made a great deal of progress after a meeting took place between a delegation from the Hamas movement and many American figures from the Democrat party in a third, unnamed country. The source stressed that the dialogue with the Europeans broke the ice, and the rigidity, of the European position in regard to Hamas. Hamas has persuaded them to accept the long-term truce without recognizing Israel, the source said. The source added that the dialogue with the European has allowed new ideas about Hamas to crystallize.
He ended, "The next few days will witness more meetings with Europeans in more than one country and in America in order to further clarify Hamas' stance … based on the truce"."