Last week, the Islamic Resistance Movement—better known by the Arabic acronym Hamas—held a rally in Gaza City to celebrate the 35th anniversary of its founding. Devorah Margolin surveys the group’s history and observes that it has changed little despite more recent efforts to show off its supposedly more moderate side:
As Hamas has repeatedly noted, two main documents highlight its goals and evolving direction: the 1988 charter, and the May 2017 update to the charter, titled the “Document of General Principles and Policies.” The latter document represented a rhetorical shift, with the group seeking to present itself as a centrist alternative to global jihadist organizations like Islamic State and secular nationalist groups like the PLO. Despite this framing, however, the updated principles and policies also declared that “resistance and jihad for the liberation of Palestine will remain a legitimate right, a duty, and an honor for all the sons and daughters of our people and our umma [global Islamic community].”
Another contradiction can be seen in the group’s framing of Islamization as a “choice” driven by individuals. For example, Hamas has repeatedly argued that while wearing the hijab is a religious obligation, it remains a woman’s choice to do so, not something that can be forced upon her. At the same time, however, the group does not discount acts of violence and pressure to achieve its goals of a “traditional” Islamic society, such as running “virtue” campaigns to discourage “Western” behaviors, excluding male teachers from girls’ schools, segregating classes after age nine, and penalizing male driving instructors who do not have a chaperone for female students.
As Hamas continues to strive for international legitimacy, it will no doubt highlight what it considers to be its most laudable traits. . . . The United States and its allies should not be distracted by this seemingly more moderate approach. Despite its rhetorical embrace of change in certain contexts, Hamas remains committed to its original goal—violent struggle against Israel by any means necessary, with itself at the helm of Palestinian leadership.
Read more on Washington Institute for Near East Policy: https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/hamas-35