US pressuring Arab allies to back anti-Hamas resolution at UN

The United States is reportedly exerting pressure on several Arab countries to back its draft UN resolution against the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas in support of the Israeli regime’s latest wave of attacks on the besieged Gaza Strip.

The UN General Assembly is scheduled to vote Thursday on the US-drafted resolution that condemns Hamas for “firing rockets into Israel and for inciting violence.”

Israeli daily newspaper Haaretz reported on Tuesday that Jason Greenblatt, President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy, had sent letters to diplomats from Morocco, Oman, Bahrain, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Qatar in order to win their support for the resolution.

A US administration official said Greenblatt had claimed that while denouncing Hamas, the motion urges support for efforts towards Palestinian political unity.

The countries which oppose terrorism and want stability in the region “have no reason” to reject the document, the US envoy was further quoted as writing.

Greenblatt is also said to have described the resolution as the first UN condemnation of Hamas, claiming it is especially relevant amid a fresh escalation in the Gaza Strip.

He has urged Arab countries not to join the Palestinian Authority’s efforts against the motion.

Besides its Arab allies, the highly pro-Israel administration in Washington has also been lobbying its allies in Europe in support of the anti-Hamas draft.

Last week, Israel’s UN Ambassador Danny Danon said US diplomats had been in talks with their EU counterparts to secure their backing for the resolution, which has sparked criticisms from different Palestinian factions.

Recently, Head of Hamas Political Bureau Ismail Haniyeh wrote to the UN to highlight the importance of international work to thwart Washington’s “aggressive” efforts meant to delegitimize the Palestinian resistance.

He further reiterated the right of the Palestinian nation to defend themselves and resist the occupation, describing Hamas as a movement that acts for “the fulfillment of the Palestinian aspirations.”

Meanwhile, Palestinian Authority officials in Ramallah have also rallied behind Hamas.

Azzam al-Ahmed, a senior Fatah official, said Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas had instructed the envoy to the UN to work on foiling the US resolution.

“Hamas is part of the Palestinian people, and we won’t accept any attempt to add it to the list of terror groups,” Ahmed told Arabi21 news website.

Similarly, Fatah spokesman Osama Qawassmeh condemned the US-led motion, saying instead of denouncing Hamas, the world should rap Israel “which is the true face of state-sponsored terrorism.”

“We will stand against all hostile efforts to condemn Hamas at the United Nations,” he said.

Furthermore, Saeb Erekat, secretary general of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), stressed that the Palestinian leadership was “leading a battle” at the UN to prevent the US from “criminalizing” Hamas by labeling it a terrorist group.

“Hamas will remain a Palestinian movement, whether we agree or disagree with it,” Erekat said

Last month, Gaza witnessed its worst flare-up of violence since the 2014 war. It began with an Israeli commando raid and a spate of deadly airstrikes against Gaza.

The Israeli aggression triggered retaliatory rocket attacks by Palestinian resistance groups. Hamas fired more than 460 rockets into the southern parts of the occupied territories in less than 24 hours.