After Dr. Lars Hänsel welcomed the audience, introduced the work of KAS and stressed the importance of platforms for dialogue, the Palestinian PA Minister of Youth and Sports, Mr. Ashraf Al-Ajrami reported on his latest assessments on the situation with Hamas. According to his words, the resistance against Hamas among the population is strongly on the rise, especially in Gaza. The people have come to realize that Hamas was not a good alternative to their problems but actually the worst solution. To his view, also among Hamas are voices that believe that the forceful takeover of Gaza was a mistake. They lost the legitimacy they had won through the elections. According to his estimation, Hamas could reach only 20 % of the votes at most if elections were held today.

Ashraf Al-Ajrami believes that Hamas could be forced to accept an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal. Mahmoud Abbas is legitimized by all factions to negotiate a peace agreement as long as the agreement is brought to a referendum. To his opinion, the Palestinians ultimately want to improve their quality of life and have realized that violence didn’t get them anywhere. If they accepted a peace agreement in a referendum – which he sees as most likely – then Hamas would have no choice but to accept it.

Mr. Al-Ajrami stressed the importance of coming to a peace agreement as soon as possible. There are positive signs on the ground showing in the right direction. To be acceptable to the Palestinians, such a peace agreement would have to entail handing over one hundred percent of the Palestinian land within the lines of ’67 (with territorial exchanges). If an end-game solution was not found in the near future the West Bank could face the same fate as Gaza. According to him, Hamas has no interest whatsoever in a Palestinian State. Their goal is the islamization of the population. Hamas is presently interested in a truce with Israel in order to have the borders to Gaza opened again. Their concern is not Erez or Karni, though, but the Rafah border to Egypt. There they have $ 40 millions worth in weapons and cash waiting to get into Gaza which they urgently need. His lecture was followed by a lively discussion. Also after the session young journalists seized the opportunity to further interview him personally.

The sessions on day II on the one hand aimed at reflecting on the way Israeli print news is edited and its responsibility and on the other hand compared it to the Palestinian coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Since many readers only read the headlines, these are of tremendous importance. An analysis of the Israeli press discovered vast discrepancies between what is conveyed in the headline (often changed by the editor) and the news actually given in the article. Since the Middle Eastern region is facing a very diverse conflict with many different factors, it is of major importance to present the diversity of the problem in the news. Simplifying the issues and dividing them only into good and bad leads us to a deterioration of the situation. One prominent example is the “no partner” label which led to unilateral disengagement. By it being unilateral, Hamas succeeded in taking credit for it.

The Palestinian speaker reported that Palestinian papers usually have 6 – 7 items translating articles from the Israeli press regarding Israeli-Palestinian matters and thereby offering a wider perspective on the conflict. In the Israeli press there is no such thing. He further criticized the fact that no items can be found in Israeli papers speaking in favor of peace. A strong phenomenon to be witnessed on the Israeli side is a growing disinterest in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Instead, the media prefers to focus on internal and social issues. It is of utmost importance to overcome this feeling of resignation and indifference when we are standing on the crossroads to extremism and the danger of losing the opportunity for two states. Not only the politicians but also the media by shaping public opinion are key factors. How we act today will define how we live tomorrow.

Katja Tsafrir