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Hamas exploits british hostage situation { July 4 2007 } Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/world/20070704-1126-palestinians-kidnappedjournalist.htmlhttp://www.signonsandiego.com/news/world/20070704-1126-palestinians-kidnappedjournalist.html
Hamas says release of kidnapped BBC reporter shows law and order is coming to Gaza Strip
By Ibrahim Barzak
ASSOCIATED PRESS
11:26 a.m. July 4, 2007
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip – Hamas said Wednesday the release of BBC reporter Alan Johnston after four months as a prisoner of a shadowy Palestinian group ushers in a “new era” of law and order in chaotic Gaza, and warned it will now go after all vigilante gunmen.
But the Islamic militant group's attempt to portray itself as a responsible ruler of the coastal territory it seized by force last month was immediately sabotaged by the kidnappers, who bragged they would never surrender their weapons.
After its militiamen swept through Gaza in June, Hamas started a campaign to show it could govern better than the ousted Fatah movement by putting an end to the constant street battles and rising crime that plagued the poverty-stricken territory.
The stakes are high. After Hamas won an election and formed a government early last year, Israel and the West cut off funding, charging that Hamas is a terror group. Money transfers have since been restored, but only to the Fatah-led regime headquartered in the West Bank.
Johnston told of hearing the fighting between Hamas and Fatah forces last month outside the room where he imprisoned.
“There was something uniquely depressing ... about being kidnapped and lying in your hideout when the forces of law and order are killing each other in a very intense way in the streets around instead of actually looking for you,” he said.
Johnston's case was a serious embarrassment for Hamas. Several times after the Gaza takeover, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh denounced the kidnapping and his aides indicated a resolution was close at hand – but nothing happened.
Opposing them was the powerful Doghmush clan and its “Army of Islam,” heavily armed Islamic extremists who sympathize with al-Qaeda. For weeks, Hamas operatives hinted they knew where Johnston was held, but they rejected an assault on the Doghmush stronghold for fear the reporter would be harmed. The kidnappers threatened to kill him if attacked.
This week Hamas gunmen surrounded the Doghmush compound, however, and Johnston was released early Wednesday after 114 days in captivity. Terms of the deal were unclear.
Gaza political analyst Talal Okal said Hamas was sending a message by winning Johnston's release “to show the Israelis, the Arab world and the international community that it is the only qualified group that can maintain the security situation in the Gaza Strip.”
Israeli anti-terrorism expert Boaz Ganor agreed. “Freeing a journalist is one of the many steps that Hamas is taking now to try to gain some international legitimacy, and this is a very low price to pay,” he said.
Ganor said the next test for Hamas would be winning freedom for an Israeli soldier captured by Hamas-linked gunmen, including the Army of Islam, a year ago.
Hamas strongman Mahmoud Zahar said the journalist's release was “a clear message.”
“We will not allow illegal actions against anybody,” he said. “We are going to confiscate guns in the hands of families used for their personal interests.”
But the kidnappers were not cooperating. Abu Khattab al-Maqdisi, spokesman for the Army of Islam, said the group's weapons “are legitimate guns, the guns of resistance, and will not be handed over to anyone.”
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, a member of Fatah, welcomed Johnston's release, calling him “the Palestinian people's friend.” Abbas said militias like the Army of Islam “destroy the authority of law and create a chaotic situation” and must be dismantled.
An Abbas aide, Yasser Abed Rabbo, alleged that Hamas and the Army of Islam were allies who coordinated the reporter's kidnapping and release. “I think that this was staged by Hamas to appear as if it respects international law,” Abed Rabbo said.
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