Mideast Faces Two New Governments
Hamas formally took power Wednesday, with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas swearing in 24 Cabinet ministers, including 14 who have served time in Israeli prisons.
The ceremony, which came just a day after Israel's nation election, ended a two-month transition period of ambiguity since Hamas' election victory in January, and lines of confrontation are now clearly drawn.
Hamas has refused to soften its violent ideology. Israel's presumed prime minister-designate, Ehud Olmert, has countered that if Hamas won't bend in a reasonable period of time, he'll set the borders of a Palestinian state by himself, without negotiations, and keep large areas of the West Bank.
Israeli officials said it's very unlikely Olmert will create a "Hamas bypass" and negotiate directly with the moderate Abbas, leader of the defeated Fatah Party, as long as Hamas refuses to change. Abbas was elected separately and wields considerable power.
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With Hamas at the helm, the cash-strapped Palestinian government also faces a crippling international economic boycott, and may run into immediate difficulties next week when March salaries are to be paid for some 140,000 government employees.
Soon after the swearing-in ceremony, Canada announced it was suspending aid to the Palestinian Authority. Other Western nations were expected to follow suit.
"With Hamas taking over now, you can't have business as usual," said Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev.
Israel suspended tens of millions of dollars in monthly tax transfers to the Palestinian Authority after the Hamas election victory, and Regev said the Israeli Cabinet would decide on additional sanctions next week.
The Cabinet ministers took their oath in two ceremonies, held simultaneously in the West Bank and Gaza because Israel bans the travel of Hamas leaders between the two territories. The two locales were hooked up by video conference.
Abbas presided over the 10-minute ceremony in Gaza City, looking glum, then left without speaking.
The first to be sworn in was Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh, who walked along a red carpet, then placed his hand on a copy of the Muslim holy book, the Quran, laid out on a low table. Haniyeh pledged to be "loyal to the homeland and its sacred places."
Haniyeh later told a news conference his government would cooperate with Abbas. He reiterated Hamas won't negotiate with Israel under the current terms, but appeared to be softening his message. Haniyeh said that if Abbas wants to go ahead with peace talks, "it's his prerogative and we have no problem with that."
Abbas then held a separate news conference and said the new government "knows what is required" of it, including dealing with Israel. Abbas reiterated that many differences remain between him and Hamas, and that both sides should try to bridge them.
In all, the new Cabinet will have 24 ministers, including Haniyeh. Ten are from Gaza, 14 from the West Bank. Nine have engineering degrees and the rest are also university graduates, Nineteen are Hamas activists, five are independents. One is a woman and one a Coptic Christian.
Fourteen spent time in Israeli prisons, serving terms ranging from six months to six years, most for membership in Hamas or fund-raising activities. Haniyeh was arrested by Israel in 1989, and served three years for allegedly heading a Hamas unit that hunted down suspected informers for Israel.
Hamas claims its military and political wings are separate, while Israel maintains Hamas politicians have had direct knowledge of the group's violent attacks that have killed hundreds of Israelis over the years.
Olmert's Kadima Party said Wednesday it would quickly form a broad ruling coalition that will pull out of much of the West Bank and draw Israel's borders by 2010.
But CBS News correspondent Robert Berger (audio) says that may be easier said than done.
Kadima won fewer seats than expected, just 28 in the 120-member parliament. So Olmert may have to form a government with some right-wing parties which are lukewarm to the pullout.
The Israeli right wing is reeling, however. The Likud party, led by hawkish former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, plunged to just 11 seats, and the right may not be able to block the pullout.
Many Israelis are looking forward to withdrawing from portions of the West Bank.
"I'm prepared to give up territory," Israeli voter Alexa Neville told Berger (audio). "I think when Israel won the Six Day War in '67, it never intended to hold on to whole chunks of territory. I think we have absolutely no right to control the lives of people who do not want to be controlled by us."
Olmert has said he would take unilateral action if the Palestinians don't indicate a readiness for compromise in a reasonable period of time. Olmert wants to keep large West Bank settlement blocs, but dismantle several dozen smaller settlements with about 70,000 residents.
Haniyeh told the Arab satellite TV station Al Jazeera that "this plan will neither be accepted by the Palestinian people, nor the Palestinian Authority."