Alluding to Russian hypocrisy vis-à-vis terrorism, Israel’s Foreign Ministry turns down Russia's request to include Hamas in the diplomatic process, saying Hamas is a terrorist group just like Chechen terrorists.
“Israel has always stood behind Russia in its fight against Chechen terrorism,” the Foreign Ministry noted in a sharp response, “and we expect similar treatment in the case of Hamas terrorism against Israel.”
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev met with his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul in Ankara on Wednesday, and the two called afterwards on Israel to include Hamas in the peace talks with the Palestinian Authority. Gul mentioned Hamas by name, saying, "Unfortunately Palestinians have been split into two... In order to reunite them, you have to speak to both sides. Hamas won elections in Gaza and cannot be ignored." Medvedev sufficed with saying that no group should be excluded from peace efforts, without naming any specific group.
The Foreign Ministry said it “absolutely rejects” the presidential calls and “expresses its deep disappointment in President Medvedev’s meeting with Khaled Mashal in Damascus.”
“Hamas is a terrorist organization in every sense of the word,” the statement continues, whose “declared purpose is the destruction of the State of Israel. Members of Hamas have been responsible for the murder of hundreds of innocent civilians, including Russian citizens and other former residents of the CIS. It is totally unacceptable for enlightened nations to divide terrorists into ‘good’ and ‘bad’ according to some geographical division… Israel sees no difference between the Hamas terror operating against Israel and the Chechen terror operating against Russia.”
