Palestinians: The New Hamas List of 'Traitors'

by Khaled Abu Toameh • May 23, 2019 at 5:00 am

One of the Arabs who have dared to speak the truth about Hamas and Islamic Jihad is Nadim Koteich, a prominent Lebanese journalist, who recently accused Islamic Jihad of starting the last round of fighting with Israel.
In an interview with the Lebanese LDC TV channel, Koteich said that Hamas and Islamic Jihad, representing the Muslim Brotherhood and Iran respectively, should have turned the Gaza Strip after Israel's withdrawal in 2005 into an opportunity for a national Palestinian compromise.
Instead, he said, the two groups have "thwarted all opportunities for peace" and have ended up in a prison called Gaza."
Such voices from some Palestinians and Arabs are a sign they may have finally woken up to realize that Palestinian leaders, particularly Hamas and Islamic Jihad, are leading their people towards the abyss. If the voices of the critics grow, then there will be hope that one day the extremist camp among the Palestinians will be weakened.

The Palestinian Hamas movement that rules the Gaza Strip has never tolerated any form of criticism. Hamas claims that Palestinian Authority and Fatah leaders who dare to speak out against it are "traitors" and "collaborators" working with the "Zionist enemy." Pictured: Masked Hamas gunmen in the Gaza Strip. (Image source: Abid Katib/Getty Images)

The Palestinian Hamas movement that rules the Gaza Strip has never tolerated any form of criticism. It does not accept any criticism from Palestinians living under its rule in the Gaza Strip. It does not accept any criticism from its rivals in the Palestinian Authority (PA) and its ruling Fatah faction. It certainly does not accept any criticism from Israel or the United States.

Now, Hamas is saying that it does not tolerate any criticism from Arabs. Hamas claims that Palestinian Authority and Fatah leaders who dare to speak out against it are "traitors" and "collaborators" working with the "Zionist enemy."

Arab media personalities who recently criticized Hamas and its allies in the Gaza Strip have now been placed on its list of "traitors" and "collaborators."

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Iran: Planning to Kidnap and Kill More Americans

by Majid Rafizadeh • May 23, 2019 at 4:00 am

A leading Republican lawmaker, Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), also the ranking Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, has pointed out that recent intelligence obtained about Iran's threat was extremely detailed.
These are simply preemptive measures that any rational state would take in the face of those clear threats. They were being taken to save the lives of American citizens and prevent the world's official leading state sponsor of terrorism from destabilizing the region.
What do critics of the Trump administration expect the American government to do...? Do these critics want the Trump administration to ignore Iran and its terror groups until another terrorist act like 9/11 occurs? Or is it possible that these critics, deep-down, do not care about U.S. national security and the lives of ordinary citizens?

According to leaked reports, Qassem Soleimani, the head of the Quds Force, the elite branch of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), recently traveled to Iraq and instructed the leaders of Iraqi Shiite militia groups, which operate under the name Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), to "prepare for proxy war". Pictured: Iraqi PMF militia commanders with Iranian advisors during Hawija offensive in Iraq, on September 27, 2017. (Image source: VOA video screenshot/Wikimedia Commons)

While plans were being concocted to harm or murder Americans, it is mind-boggling that people -- even entire governments -- were criticizing the Trump administration for preparing preemptive measures against multiple credible threats from the Iranian government and its forces.

While people were squabbling over the choices the Trump administration was making, the Iranian leaders, known to have mastered conducting asymmetric warfare, were giving directives to kidnap and kill American soldiers.

A leading Republican lawmaker, Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), also the ranking Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, has pointed out that recent intelligence obtained about Iran's threat was extremely detailed.

"To the extent I can discuss it, it was human intelligence," he said, and added that, "One of the Hezbollah cells is known for its kidnapping and killing operations, and their directive was to go in and kill and kidnap American soldiers."

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