Meshal: Hamas is harmless

Khaled Meshal is a man with a sense of humor:

 

Hamas political bureau chief Khaled Meshal told Sky News on Saturday that he is willing to hold talks with President-elect Barak Obama, and that he is challenging the newly elected leader to follow through on past statements indicating a willingness to sit down with America's chief adversaries on the world stage.

 

"[Obama] should know he has duties to the United States and in the whole world and in hotspots especially in the Middle East," Meshal told Sky. "Yes we are ready for dialogue with President Obama and with the new American administration with an open mind, on the basis that the American administration respects our rights and our options," Meshal said.

 

The Damascus-based Islamist leader told the British television network that unlike U.S. policy under George W. Bush, the Obama administration will have no choice but to engage Hamas if it seeks to adequately address the issues at the core of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
 
"The American administration, if they want to deal with the region, Palestine and the Arab-Israeli conflict, they have no other option than deal with Hamas because we are a real force on the ground, effective," Meshal told Sky.

 

"And we are a movement that won a majority of votes in the election. Second of all, it's not right that Hamas poses any danger to anyone."

 

That's good to know, because someone might think those rockets falling in Ashqelon are dangeous.

 

Ami Isseroff