RAMALLAH, West Bank, 25 January 2008 — Israeli media outlets yesterday said that Hamas has added another victory to its achievements in handling the strict siege imposed on Gaza Strip since the movement ousted the security sources of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and senior officials of rival Fatah movement last June.
The daily Yediot Ahronot said that the departure and return of the Haj pilgrims to Makkah, the renewed supply of fuel and electricity, the opening of the Rafah crossing, and the enlistment of the masses and some Arab, Islamic, and Western governments to the Palestinian cause — all of the above are credited to, at the end of the day, to Hamas.
Yediot said that Hamas is reinforcing its hold under the siege, which is slowly being cracked. Regardless of whether Abbas spoke with the Israelis or not, regardless of whether Palestinian Authority officials convinced their counterparts in Israel or in the international Quartet — at the end of the day, the latest achievement is credited to Hamas’ and Gaza residents’ determination and “cohesion,” it added.
The daily considered that with the assistance of its own media outlets as well as those in the Arab world, like the Qatar-based Al Jazeera, Hamas again proved that it controls a well-oiled machine.
http://www.arabnews.com/?page=4§ion=0&article=106075&d=25&m=1&y=2008