Why would a defeated terror organization that inflicted immense damage on its own people, its neighbors, and the entire region be offered an exit strategy or a political off-ramp?By Khaled Abu Toameh, Gatestone InstituteA new Palestinian political alliance now taking shape should serve as a warning to the United States, Europe, and anyone hoping to see a moderate and peaceful Palestinian leadership emerge after the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led massacre in Israel.Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), Mohammed Dahlan’s “Reformist Current” in Fatah, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), and other Palestinian factions have been discussing the formation of a broad joint list to contest the elections for the Palestinian Legislative Council of the Palestinian Authority (PA), scheduled for November 28, 2026.This new list is being marketed as Palestinian “national unity.” It would be more accurate to describe it as an attempt to bring terrorist organizations back into Palestinian political life through the ballot box.The factions participating in the discussions say they support a “broad national alliance” that would participate in the elections.They claim that the elections represent an opportunity to achieve “national unity,” end Palestinian divisions, and reorganize PA institutions on the basis of partnership and consensus.Unity with whom?Hamas and PIJ are Islamist terrorist organizations that reject Israel’s right to exist. Hamas was responsible, together with other Palestinians, for the October 7 atrocities.PIJ, an Iran-backed terrorist organization, has participated in countless terrorist attacks against Israel.These organizations are now apparently being invited to reinvent themselves as political parties.The most striking development is PIJ’s reported decision, in principle, to participate in the alliance. PIJ has never before participated in PA parliamentary elections.It has nevertheless been preparing for the possibility of instructing its cadres and members to register or update their electoral records.Has Palestinian Islamic Jihad suddenly transformed itself into a peaceful political organization? Hardly.A senior PIJ source explicitly emphasized that the organization has not even abandoned its opposition to the Oslo Accords signed between Israel and the PLO in 1993 and 1995.PIJ therefore appears interested in participating in elections without changing the ideology that has defined it since its founding 45 years ago.The surprise, however, is not that Hamas and PIJ are seeking political legitimacy. Terrorist organizations have long understood that elections and political institutions can be used as instruments for achieving objectives they have failed to attain through terrorism.The bigger surprise is Mohammed Dahlan.Dahlan, a former Palestinian Authority security commander and senior Fatah official who is based in Abu Dhabi, has for years been portrayed by some Westerners and Arabs as a “pragmatic” and “moderate” Palestinian figure.His name has repeatedly surfaced as a possible successor to PA President Mahmoud Abbas and, more recently, in discussions about who might play a role in the future administration of the Gaza Strip.Now Dahlan’s faction is discussing running in an electoral alliance with Hamas and PIJ. There is an old saying: Show me who your friends are, and I’ll tell you who you are.Those who are promoting Dahlan as a moderate alternative to Abbas might want to ask why a supposedly pragmatic Palestinian figure would be prepared to form an electoral partnership with Islamist terrorist organizations.They might also want to ask whether this is the person they envision helping administer the Gaza Strip.There is another troubling aspect to the story: Egypt’s role. The discussions have been taking place in Cairo under Egyptian auspices as part of efforts to promote Palestinian “national unity.”Egyptian sources have said that Cairo is also seeking to arrange discussions between Abbas’s Fatah faction and Hamas to reach a “consensus formula” concerning the elections, including a new formula regarding Hamas’s participation.Why should Egypt be searching for a formula that would facilitate Hamas’s return to Palestinian politics?Should Egypt and the rest of the international community not instead be demanding that Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad surrender their weapons, dismantle their military structures, and disappear from Palestinian political life?If this is what Palestinian “national unity” looks like, Palestinians would be better off without it.There should be no political role for those responsible for the October 7 massacre. There should be no political reward for organizations that have brought death and destruction on both Israelis and Palestinians.There should be no parliamentary power or rehabilitation for Iran-backed terrorist groups.The danger is that the proposed alliance could perform well enough in the upcoming elections to become a dominant force in the next Palestinian Legislative Council.Palestinian political analyst Hilal Nassar, writing about the emerging alliance, pointed out that it could develop into something far larger than a temporary electoral arrangement.He described a potential bloc incorporating Islamist, leftist, nationalist and independent forces that could change the existing Palestinian political establishment and perhaps eventually present itself as an alternative to the Palestinian Authority and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO):“The alliance is considered a single political bloc that includes all Palestinians with all their colors, spectrums, and beliefs under a common name, and may be an alternative to the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian Authority, which have failed to unify the Palestinian ranks for many years.“It is possible, and indeed certain, that the alliance aims to restructure the political landscape and participate in shaping the political vision and national decision. The alliance could lead to a historic transformation in the Palestinian system.”This new Palestinian “unity” government being planned would mean that instead of producing new and moderate Palestinian leaders, the election could result in a parliament in which Hamas, PIJ, and other rejectionist groups become major political power brokers and representatives of the Palestinians.Is this really what Washington and its Western allies want? Are Western governments once again entertaining the fantasy that Islamist terrorist organizations can be transformed into legitimate political parties?Hamas members can remove their military uniforms and put on suits. PIJ operatives can replace their rifles with election posters.They can talk about democracy, elections, and political partnership. None of that necessarily changes what they plan.Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib, a respected Palestinian-American analyst from Gaza and outspoken opponent of Hamas, has warned of precisely such a political rehabilitation.“Is Hamas already getting a political makeover?” he asked, warning that a “Western-driven disaster” could be developing in which accountability for Hamas is replaced by efforts to rescue the organization politically. “Hamas must never again be trusted with Palestinian politics,” Alkhatib wrote.“It should face the kind of post-defeat reckoning that Nazi Germany faced after World War Two or that the Baathist regimes of Iraq and Syria faced after their collapse.Why would a defeated terror organization that inflicted immense damage on its own people, its neighbors, and the entire region be offered an exit strategy or a political off-ramp?What possible campaign promise could Hamas present that makes it worthy of consideration in Palestinian elections? More war and jihad (holy war)? More governance failures? More corruption and theft of aid?Hamas is a spent force, a used and discarded object, a wrecked entity that cannot be repaired or repurposed.”Alkhatib argued that Palestinian politics need “deradicalization and a new framework that learns from past failures,” rather than empowering factions responsible for repeated catastrophes.He added:“Western governments, elites, and observers continue to display remarkable naivete about the Middle East, Arab political culture, and ideologically driven movements.Democracy is not simply voting at a booth. It is the creation of a democratic tradition, a free society, an open media environment, and a civic ethos that is not driven by ideology, religion, or extremism.The United States, under a Republican administration twenty years ago, made a grave mistake by insisting on elections that included Hamas. Will the Trump administration repeat the same error once again?”The United States should know better.In 2006, Hamas was allowed to participate unconditionally in the Palestinian Legislative Council election and won 74 of the 132 seats.A year later, Hamas violently seized control of the Gaza Strip from the Palestinian Authority.The mistake of 2006 must not be repeated. The problem with the Western approach then was the assumption that participation in elections would moderate Hamas.Instead, Hamas used elections to gain legitimacy and power while retaining its weapons, ideology, and terrorist infrastructure.There is no reason to believe that things would be different now. Hamas and PIJ might even accept cleverly-worded conditions to enable them to participate.They might go as far as saying they accept a Palestinian state alongside Israel. They will say whatever is necessary to get through the political door.The real questions should be simpler: Will Hamas, PIJ and other Palestinian terrorist organizations recognize Israel’s right to exist? Will they renounce terrorism?Will they surrender all their weapons? Will they dismantle their military wings? Will they abandon jihad as a means of eliminating Israel?Unless the answer to all these questions is unequivocally yes, terrorists should have no role in elections, government, or Palestinian decision-making.After October 7, 2023, the international community should be discussing how to remove Hamas and PIJ from Palestinian political and military life – not how to help them have seats in parliament.The post Palestinian terrorists try and repurpose their jihad – analysis appeared first on World Israel News.