Vol. 11, No. 4 16 June 2011
Jonathan D. Halevi
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The recent overt confrontation between Mahmoud al-Zahar, the Minister of Foreign Affairs in Gaza, and Damascus-based Hamas political bureau leader Khaled Mashaal reflects underground currents feeding the tension within the Hamas leadership in Gaza and Syria.
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Al-Zahar is demanding that Hamas-Gaza be given more weight in decision-making, while the Hamas leadership abroad contends that the center of power should remain outside of Palestine.
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Since the Israeli disengagement from Gaza in 2005, Hamas' decisive victory in the parliamentary elections of 2006, and Hamas' military takeover of Gaza in June 2007, the Hamas government has gained significant political and economic power. It conducts foreign relations and imposes taxes on imports from Israel and from Egypt that have become remarkable revenue sources. This has weakened the dependence of Hamas-Gaza on the Hamas leadership abroad.
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In addition, the consolidation of the Hamas regime in Gaza, where the main military forces of the al-Qassam Brigades are stationed, has gradually changed the balance of power inside Hamas. Al-Zahar challenged Mashaal's authority to lead the movement, arguing that the center of power should move from abroad to "inside" Palestine. Fatah underwent a similar process after the establishment of the Palestinian Authority in 1994, which lead eventually to a majority of the leadership living in the Palestinian territories.
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Mashaal intentionally refrained from directly referring to the challenge posed by al-Zahar, probably to avoid granting him status as an equal contender for the leadership. The current main interest of Mashaal and his colleagues is to promote reconciliation with Fatah in order to pave the way for Hamas to join the PLO and take over the organization that is recognized internationally as the sole representative of the Palestinian people.
