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Inside Hamas' power structure

Hard-line Palestinian party governs with delicate balance of politicians in exile in Syria and militants in West Bank and Gaza

BY MOHAMAD BAZZI | Newsday Middle East Correspondent

May 28, 2006

DAMASCUS, Syria - Who runs Hamas?

It's a simple question, but the answer is complex. Hamas has many facets: a religious movement, a network of social services and a guerrilla group engaged in terrorism. After winning parliamentary elections in January, it is now the dominant faction in the Palestinian government.

But Hamas does not act like a typical political party. Above all else, it is a guerrilla movement and it functions in the secretive, shadowy way of most insurgent groups, even after they assume power. As Hamas begins to govern the Palestinians, questions about its organizational structure - and how it makes key decisions, such as whether to disarm or to recognize Israel - become more urgent.

"To survive underground, groups like Hamas cannot encourage internal dialogue or dissent. They must remain hierarchical and highly disciplined," said Marwan Kabalan, a political scientist at Damascus University. "The next test for Hamas is whether it can fully mature into a political movement. Will its leaders be pragmatic enough to survive in government?"

External leaders

Most day-to-day decisions within Hamas are made by its political bureau, which has eight to 10 members who mainly live in exile in Syria. The bureau is chaired by Khaled Meshaal, a soft-spoken former physics teacher who is the group's supreme political leader. Hamas also has a Shura Council, an internal parliament made up of about 50 members who live both inside and outside the Palestinian territories.

The council has final say on major policy decisions, such as a change in Hamas' stance toward Israel or whether the group would enter into peace negotiations. But the council generally cannot meet in one place at one time because many of its members are unable to travel into the Palestinian territories - the West Bank and Gaza - for fear of assassination. So the leadership consults via e-mails, faxes, cell phones and coded messages.

The political bureau in Syria draws its strength from being Hamas' main fundraising arm and managing relations with Arab and Muslim countries. Some Arab diplomats and officials say that makes Meshaal and his inner circle more pragmatic than the Hamas leadership within the territories. But this could also mean that, with Hamas in power, splits could emerge between the internal and external leaders.

"With all the Palestinian groups, a rift develops between leaders on the ground and those in the diaspora," said Timur Goksel, a former UN adviser in the Middle East who now teaches at the American University of Beirut. "Eventually, the balance of power shifts to those on the ground."

Internal leaders

Among the most prominent internal Hamas leaders are Ismail Haniyeh, the new Palestinian prime minister; Mahmoud al-Zahar, the new foreign minister; and Saeed Siyam, the new interior minister. Al-Zahar and Siyam are former members of the political bureau.

Arab officials who monitor Hamas say a major question is how much control Meshaal has over the entire organization, especially militants inside the West Bank and Gaza.

"Hamas is a not an entirely cohesive organization: There is a political wing abroad, a political wing inside the territories and a military wing," an Arab diplomat in Damascus said on condition of anonymity. "Each of these wings represents a different trend within Hamas." For now, the diplomat said, much of the power rests with the exiled leaders. "The political bureau makes most decisions by itself," the diplomat said. "These are decisions that need to be made quickly, and they need to be decisive. There's no time for bickering."

Analysts speculate constantly about which set of political leaders is more "moderate," or willing to make concessions and negotiate with Israel. But some officials say that conjecture is too simplistic because the debate within Hamas is not between hard-liners and moderates.

"The entire group is hardline. There is no moderate Hamas," said an Arab security official who monitors militant groups and spoke on condition of anonymity. "It varies from pragmatic to less pragmatic. No one is going to rise into the leadership ranks of Hamas by openly advocating negotiations with Israel."

Hamas against the world

Since it won 74 of the 132 seats in the Palestinian legislature, Hamas has been headed for a confrontation with the international community. It is designated a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union. Israel and the West are demanding that it renounce violence, recognize the Jewish state and promise to abide by past peace agreements, such as the 1993 Oslo Accords. Hamas leaders have refused.

Israeli officials are ruling out any dialogue with a Palestinian government led by Hamas, which has killed hundreds of Israelis in suicide bombings since the mid-1990s. After Hamas leaders took office last month, Western officials cut off aid until the group lays down its arms and recognizes Israel. More than half of the Palestinian Authority's $2-billion annual budget comes from foreign donors, with the largest portions from Europe and the United States.

While they refuse to detail the group's decision-making and leadership structure, Hamas officials are quick to announce there are no internal divisions over strategy. Three days after its Jan. 25 election victory, Meshaal vowed that Hamas would not make concessions to appease the West.

"We are ready to work with Europe, and even America," he said at a Damascus news conference. "But they must be willing to engage us as we are, and not as they want us to be." He insisted that Hamas would not disarm unless Israel agrees to the creation of a Palestinian state in all of Gaza and the West Bank, with East Jerusalem as its capital.