Another day brings yet another statement from Hamas that they will never recognize the "Zionist state that was established on our land," making it ever more difficult to insist that the terrorist group will moderate their position. The good news? They've offered Israel a hudna:

Defying international pressure, the militant Islamic group Hamas said on Friday it will never recognize Israel but might be willing to negotiate terms for a temporary truce with the Jewish state.

Khaled Meshaal, the top leader of Hamas which won last week's Palestinian parliamentary election by a landslide, made the offer to Israel via a column titled "To whom it may concern," published in the al-Hayat al-Jadida newspaper.

"We will never recognize the legitimacy of the Zionist state that was established on our land," Meshaal, the Damascus-based head of the political and military wings of the militant Islamic group, wrote in the column. ...

They have said they might heed a truce with Israel as an interim measure that could include the establishment of a Palestinian state in the Gaza Strip and occupied West Bank, but would not abandon a long-term goal to destroy Israel.

"If you (Israel) are willing to accept the principle of a long-term truce then we will be ready to negotiate with you over the conditions of such a truce," Meshaal wrote.

I see this as the Dread Pirate Roberts offer of peace. Fans of the movie The Princess Bride will recall that Wesley tells Buttercup about his uneasy relationship with his captor after being made the pirate's valet. Every night as Wesley went to bed, the pirate told him, "Good night, Wesley. Fine job. I'll most likely kill you in the morning."

The Hamas offer is the most honest attempt at a hudna that Muslims have recently made. The truce only lasts while the Muslim can take advantage of it and strengthens his position at the expense of his enemy. It does not lead to peace, but only postpones conflict until the time of the Islamist's choosing. Hamas insists that they will eventually destroy Israel, but wants to offer peace as long as Hamas can consolidate its power in Gaza and the West Bank.

Elsewhere, Reuters reports that the US will probably start releasing funds so that Hamas does not turn to Iran for funding. That's almost as dumb as accepting a hudna. The point isn't to co-opt Iran as a bankroller of terrorist groups -- the point is to stop terrorist groups from getting funding at all. Hamas already gets money from Iran anyway. Receiving American dollars on top of that won't lead to moderation on the part of Hamas, but embolden them towards more aggression, and give them the means to pay for it as well.

Cut off the funds to Palestine. Make the people there understand that with democracy comes responsibility for the choices made -- and that choosing a terrorist group to run one's country brings severe consequences to one's global standing.

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Tracked on February 3, 2006 11:33 AM