Haaretz
Tevet 28, 5766
The Syrian government on
Saturday said Israeli "prevarication and rejection of peace" were behind
the Hamas landslide victory in Palestinian elections.
Hamas
captured 75 of the 132 parliament seats, proving a "new era has started
not only on the Palestinian arena but in the whole region and the world,"
the government daily Tishrin said in a front page editorial, marking
Damascus' first official reaction to the Wednesday vote.
Syria, a
staunch enemy of Israel, is the home to radical Palestinian factions that
oppose making peace with Israel, including Hamas and Islamic
Jihad.
The Palestinian people have chosen the "path of resistance.
They weren't only searching for change for the sake of change, but for a
just cause, which couldn't not be solved through political and diplomatic
means because of Israel's prevarication and rejection of peace," the
newspaper said.
It said the election caused a "worldwide
earthquake," noting what it saw as the paradox of the West, the
administration of U.S. President George W. Bush in particular, being
"unable to accept the results of democracy or to respect the peoples'
choice."
The paper said the United States should accept the new
reality and that Israel should alter its approach regarding
Hamas.
To read more reactions from the Arab world following
Hamas' victory Click
here.
Palestinian National Economy Minister
Mazen Sinnukrot said Friday that "The international community should
maintain (its) support of the Palestinian people if we are really seeking
a prosperous region, a stable region, and would like to see a viable
(Palestinian) state."
"The international community, especially from
Europe, the States, Japan, the Arabs have been ... supporting our budget,
supporting our infrastructure projects, our institutions," he
said.