EX-ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER SAYS NETANYAHU ‘PROMOTED’ HAMAS

Policy designed to ‘destroy’ the Palestinian Authority

An ex-Prime Minister of Israel has charged the current Prime Minister Netanyahu with conducting a long-time policy of support for Hamas. Ehud Olmert has confirmed a report by anonymous sources of a sickening deception – on the one hand condemning Hamas as terrorists, and on the other, promoting the Islamic group.

Ehud Olmert was Prime Minister from 2006 to 2009.

In an interview on October 18 with the UK Daily Telegraph, he said:

‘When he [Netanyahu] took over from me in 2009 he said the first priority was to destroy Hamas and actually what he did was the opposite. He tried to destroy Abu Mazen [Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas] and the Palestinian Authority because that…would have required political concessions from Israel. And he moved to promote Hamas because they never would be partners for negotiation, so you could kick them.’[i]

Olmert’s remarks got little traction in the pro-Israel Western media.

Previously on October 9, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported a similar story. It  alleged Netanyahu said in March 2019 at a meeting of his Likud party’s Knesset members: ‘Anyone who wants to thwart the establishment of a Palestinian state has to support bolstering Hamas and transferring money to Hamas. This is part of our strategy – to isolate the Palestinians in Gaza from the Palestinians in the West Bank.’[ii]

On October 19, the pro-Zionist site JNS furiously denied Haaretz’ charge that Netanyahu had funded Hamas. ‘Israel, however, was not financing Hamas. It was letting Qatar move money in. As outrageous as that was, it was part of the same system that had Israel providing water and power to Gaza.’[iii]

JNS has not commented on the claims made by ex-Prime Minister Olmert in the Daily Telegraph.

Not giving peace a chance in 2008

A question remains. Who was responsible for the breakdown of the last negotiations, held in 2008 when Olmert was Prime Minister?

According to ex US President Jimmy Carter, Hamas would have agreed to a peace resolution in collaboration with the Palestine Authority in 2008. The New York Times reported that  Carter ‘…said on Monday that Hamas leaders had told him they would accept a peace agreement negotiated by their rival, Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, if Palestinians approved the deal in a vote.’[iv]

Carter added, ‘We do not believe that peace is likely and certainly that peace is not sustainable unless a way is found to bring Hamas into the discussions in some way. The present strategy of excluding Hamas and excluding Syria is just not working.’

PA Authority President Abbas has said that the then-Prime Minister Olmert had offered a land for peace settlement, but didn’t show him locations on a map.[v] The offer was refused for that reason, he said.

According to Haaretz, while the 2008 talks were going on, preparations were underway for what was Operation Cast Lead against Gaza.[vi] This was followed by attacks in 2012, 2014 and 2021. Tens of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza have died from Israel’s wars and the blockade on the 25-mile-long, 7-mile-wide strip of land since 1967.

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[i] Rothwell, James, ‘Nato can now bring stability to Gaza. Netanyahu is finished,’ Daily Telegraph (print edition) 18 Oct 2023. Nato should help to restore Gaza Strip, says Ehud Olmert (telegraph.co.uk).  Also see Why Israel’s former prime minister is encouraging protests against Netanyahu’s government - Vox

[ii] Another Concept Implodes: Israel Can’t Be Managed by a Criminal Defendant - Israel News - Haaretz.com

[iii] The myth that Israel/Netanyahu created/funded Hamas - JNS.org

[iv] Carter says Hamas will accept Abbas-brokered deal - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

[v] Abbas admits he rejected 2008 peace offer from Olmert | The Times of Israel

[vi] Disinformation, Secrecy and Lies: How the Gaza Offensive Came About - Haaretz Com - Haaretz.com