Hamas Shocked By Arab Peace Summit Backing

(CBS/AP)  Hamas said Saturday it was shocked Arab countries have decided to attend next week's U.S.-backed Mideast peace summit and underlined its opposition with a threat to launch deadlier rocket attacks on Israel.

Hamas argues the time is not right for talks with Israel because the Palestinians are divided. With the Islamic militant group in control of Gaza, Hamas says moderate Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas does not have a mandate to negotiate.

"The announcement of the Arabs that they would participate in the Annapolis conference was a great shock for the Palestinian people," Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri, said in a statement. "Participation opens doors for normalization of relations with the Israeli occupiers."

Another Hamas official said the group was on the brink of developing a more lethal type of warhead for the rockets it regularly lobs from Gaza into Israel.

"They can be developed in a short period to create sufficient terror and fear and make the Israelis live in pain no less than what our people live through because of the repeated incursions into our villages and cities in the West Bank and Gaza," said Ahmed Yousef, an adviser to Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas prime minister in Gaza.

Israel, which warmly welcomed the Arab League decision Friday to go to the Mideast conference in Annapolis, Md., has repeatedly said it expects Hamas to try and thwart peace efforts.

"We take these threats very seriously," Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev said in response to Yousef's comments.

Gaza militants have fired hundreds of crude, homemade rockets at Israeli border communities in recent years, killing 12 people.

In a statement sent to reporters, Yousef said the rockets have had "limited effect because they don't carry lethal warheads,"

Israel has launched limited incursions into Gaza in recent months to try halt rocket fire. It has also cut back on fuel to Gaza and plans to reduce electricity supplies to the territory starting Dec. 2.

Late Friday night, Israeli troops shot dead two Palestinian men who approached the border fence separating Gaza from Israel, Palestinian medical staff said.

Residents said the men often scoured the area for cement and other building materials to sell. An army statement said the two men appeared suspicious and were shot as they moved in darkness toward troops at the border fence, which is in an area off limits to Palestinians.

Militants frequently use the area to fire rockets at Israel. However, other Palestinians enter the danger zone to scavenge for building materials or sneak into Israel to work.

Hamas, which refuses to recognize Israel, seized control of Gaza from Abbas' security forces in the summer.

Meanwhile, Syria said on Saturday it was still waiting for a plain affirmation that its primary demand for putting the question of the Golan Heights on the agenda was met by the United States before Damascus publicizes its attendance, reports CBS News producer George Baghdadi in Damascus.

"We will announce our participation once we get the confirmation," said foreign ministry spokeswoman Bushra Kanafani.

"Thus far, we received nothing in this regard," she added with no other elaboration.

The United States came under increasing pressure to allow Syria to raise the issue of the Golan, captured by Israel from Syria in 1967, after Arab foreign ministers put their weight behind the request following a meeting in Cairo, reports Baghdadi.

The Syrians know well the spoiler role they can play in the region and have used that as leverage, knowing that the conference, the first chance in years to begin a dialogue between the Arabs and Israel, will not be as credible if the chair for Damascus is empty.

Syria fully understands that the meeting is mainly intended to launch Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations after a lull of seven years, but any discussion on the Golan would mean recognition it was not any more internationally isolated.

In the Abbas-controlled West Bank, security forces prevented two Hamas officials from holding a news conference Saturday in the town of Ramallah, cordoning off the building where they had planned to speak about Monday's peace conference.

Journalists were ordered not to photograph or film the officials, who were led away by police.

Hamas members in Gaza said the two men were released after two hours.

Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki said the police action was necessary because recent Hamas threats have run contrary to the Abbas administration's efforts to impose law and order.

In Gaza, about 200 people gathered outside the seafront parliament building, calling on Abbas not to make any concessions to Israel at the Annapolis conference.

"We tell those going to Annapolis, we will not forgive you, and we will not forget if you give up any of our rights," said one of the speakers, 15-year-old Uthman Abdullah. "History will curse you and your people will curse you."

In Jerusalem, about 500 Israelis rallied outside Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's official residence, calling on him to make every effort to make peace with the Palestinians.

[fibonacci_]

Violence is an important part of these peoples'' identity - violence which is greatly fueled by religious doctrines. Nothing will stop it in our lifetime. Violence and religion are too important to them.

[closethippy1]

Hamas might be shocked but the Arab league is not doing any better by whinning about how low their expections are.
And I don''''t blame either one of them for being so grim about the Annapolis meeting.
Even President Bush stopped calling the meeting a "conference" because he himself has low expectations.
This is all Condi''''s work and I really don''''t know what the poor woman wants out of this.
To get to this point after over 40 years of conflict and negotiations after negotiations and meeting after meeting and conference after conference without even an agreement on what they''''re going to talk about at Annapolis is simply insane.
The Arabs want to set a number of talking points so they can be negotiated at the downgraded-conference-meeting instead of showing up just to agree on what to talk and then go home empty handed.
But that''''s probably what Israel wants: For the Arab leaders to go home and dissapoint their people once again for doing nothing.
I''''m aware of the enormous anger Israel and its supporters have because of the Holocaust and the even greater anger they have towards Arabs because they''''re supposedly worse than the Nazis for killing Jews after the Holocaust happened.
I truly get the impression that Israel is doing everything possible to have failed talks after failed talks hoping the more radical elements will take power in the Arab countries so Israel can nuke the entire area once and for all.

[fibonacci_]

"And for all other Christian attackers and atheists on these boards, well see who comes out on top in the end...." - singing Rick

No, I do not think we will. Boy are your arguments strong Jesus boy. You sound just like an extremist Muslim in your conviction. Just like them.

[fibonacci_]

About the Ron Paul guy, I tend to agree with an earlier poster that he is probably a student, somewhat naive and idealistic. What he has done has also shown a degree of immaturity ... to me it looks like he is playing around a bit and perhaps a bit angry at the negative reaction he has gotten.

[logicanada]

Once Israel has fully absorbed and put to work(for diminished wages) the million plus Russian-Jew immigrants it will re-fire the Palestinian oppression machine to get more cheap labor.
Any peace accord will last exactly that long.
No wonder God ''chose'' them to be banished to the corners of the earth.
They are righteous in the media but inherently evil in deed.

[logicanada]

fibonacci....well said!
Old singinrick can be as annoying in his God spamming as _ _ _prophet is with Ron Paul.
I wonder what his take is on the savior named Jesus Cordova (J.C.) who emerged from the Mexican desert after traveling from ''Magdellina'' to rescue a child, only to hear cries of ''Deport Him'' on these posts.
I didn''t see Singinrick posting on THAT story.
I wonder why.
Christian of convenience perhaps?

[fibonacci_]

In reponse to my saying:
"Your god is evil and pretentious. He is all good but he lets evil happen on this earth - things that have nothing to do with what you call "free will" which I do not even believe in."

Singing Rick said (ommitting in his quote of me the part about free will, which he probably did not even read):
"EVIL happens on this earth because people reject their Creator and willingly choose to sin against Him out of their own FREE WILL."

The weak part of this argument is that you then have to explain why God would choose to pick on some 2 year old little girl, afflicting her with a genetic disease which kills her. You would have to explain why earthquakes kill thousands of people also on the basis of free will. Is his argument strong?

[fibonacci_]

"What is highly immoral is teaching kids that they are nothing more than a bunch of animals like the rest of the "animal" kingdom." - singinrick

"What is immmoral is brainwashing children through evolution that they have no soul, they have no spirit, and that they simply popped into existence by pure chance "millions of years ago" without the possibility of a God existing that loves them." -singinrick

"Whats immoral is teaching children that the Bible is wrong, that they dont need God, and that they can spend their lives rejecting their Creator. That is what you are all for, and this my friend is the EPITOME of being HIGHLY IMMORAL."

[fibonacci_]

In response to my words:
"Tell your children they have great minds and can choose to believe what they want. Tell your children there are many other religions and that some people have no religion. It is the only moral thing to do."

Singing Rick said:
"Its too bad you arent practicing what youre preaching in this category. For you, its brainwash them with evolution and darwinism, and give them no other choice in public schools. Its Darwinism, and no other choice! ... The Bible, the only book of Truth ever written, is the foundation of a life of fulfillment through the Lord Jesus Christ. The most important thing a parent can tell their children growing up is about Jesus. He is the only way they will ever be able to know their purpose in life."

The problem with this line of argument is it entirely depends on the supposition that the Christian religion is true. I, on the other hand, only encourage teaching scientific theories leaving it up to people to decide what is right or wrong. I also do not encourage teaching children that the bible or koran are false (or true)...that goes against what I said above. Who has the stronger argument here?

[closethippy1]

singinrick, God, from above, looks down upon you with a smile on his face.
You''ve done Him proud. You''ve more than surpassed your purpose on Earth and there''s nothing but praise for you in the Heavens.
The Virgin Mary herself gets all wet when she sees you defending Her People.
Geezus loves you, singinrick, He loves you and He, too, smiles upon you like a CEO at his mistress.
Everyone is looking upon you awaiting your next post, your next fight against those who shall perish their souls in the oceans of fire in Hell.
Good boy, good boy.