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| PALESTINIAN AMBASSADOR |

“We Will Forge A United,

Independent Country”

H.E Ambassador Ahmad Abdelrazek is in his fourth year as Head of the Palestinian Mission
to Ireland. When SIGNAL interviewed him three years ago, after the latest round of conflict
in Gaza, there was a feeling of stasis regarding peace talks with Israel. Meeting him
over three years later in the Mission of Palestine’s newly acquired premises on Dublin’s
Leeson Street, he says ‘nothing is happening, but yet a lot is happening,’ referring to the
ongoing ‘reconciliation’ process that is currently being negotiated between the Fatah led
Government in Ramallah and the Hamas regime in Gaza. The issue of whether Hamas
will disarm is sure to be a contentious one. Speaking to the local Ma’an News Agency in
October, prior to our interview with the Ambassador, Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem
said that the group’s weapons are not up for discussion, insisting that “the resistance’s
weapons are legal”. “They are here to protect Palestinians and free their lands [from Israeli
occupation],” Qassem said. “Therefore, this should not be an issue to discuss.” Tariq Dana,
policy adviser at Al-Shabaka: The Palestinian Policy Network, does not expect Hamas to
change its tune anytime soon. “It is difficult to imagine Hamas giving up its weapons for
the sake of reconciliation,” he told Al Jazeera.
The Ambassador, however, says that this rapprochement is a serious development which
will lead to a new united Government for his people and his fractured country.

What is the current situation between the Fatah ad- H.E Ambassador Ahmad Abdelrazek.
ministration in Ramallah and Hamas in Gaza?
“What’s happening is serious and very interesting. The
negotiations are ongoing and we have learned to take
things step-by-step, but there is good will from both par-
ties. Egypt has helped mediate the deal so far and build on
that good will and there has been some contact between
the Palestinian Government in Ramallah and the Middle
East Quartet (United States, European Union, United Na-
tions and Russia). There is still a lot of work to do but the
initial signs are that progress can be made. I think it be-
came clear after 11 years that Hamas has not been able
to govern Gaza successfully and even they realise that a
change is needed. If a new deal is struck, the West Bank
and the Gaza Strip will be reunited and things will go back
to the way they were prior to 2007, with Gaza falling under
the control of the central Government.”

So what are Hamas getting for this and did the Ramal-
lah government punish Gaza, by stopping payments
etc., to destabilise Hamas?
If you’re referring to wages being stopped then you need
to hear the other side of the story. The fact is that Hamas
collected money from people for utilities such as electricity
but did not pay the bills. The Palestinian Authority (PA) had
to pay those the bills for over ten years. Eventually, the PA
had to address this issue and call Hamas to account. One
must look at the situation in Gaza from a broader perspec-
tive: Gaza is besieged by the Israelis and Hamas did not
help improve conditions there. If you don’t rule with due
care for your population or the broader interests of your
country, then you will be isolated. Hamas has worsened

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