Terrorism Article Review 2003
Article Review “Hamas Blood Money Mixing Good Works and Terror is no Formula for Peace” by Matthew Levitt Article Review “Hamas Blood Money Mixing Good Works and Terror is no Formula for Peace” by Matthew Levitt Matthew Levitt wrote an article concerning the overlapping financial activities of pro-Palestinian terrorist groups, Hamas in particular. The article, with authority from PeaceWatch, appeared in The Washington Institute’s Special Reports on The Arab-Israeli Peace Process, on May 7, 2003. ... His informative/educational article illuminates the dual role of the Hamas social welfare organizations in providing desperately needed social programs and services in Gaza and the West Bank, while also aiding and supporting the organization’s terrorist attacks, including suicide bombers. ... The article is intended to inform the general population and possibly to sway that opinion. ... ”(1) While this article was apparently intended to present Mr. Levitt’s opinions, he makes a number of statements throughout the article which may be considered generalizations or assumptions, as they are presented without any supporting documentation. ... This is further reported in the article by Dan Shaham, Director of Public Affairs, Israeli Embassy-London: “Furthermore, Hamas’ welfare network plays a direct role in building support for their extreme ideology, as well as facilitating its terrorist activities. ... ” (3) The International Policy Institute for Counter-terrorism (ICT) reports the following: “The network of charity associations serves as a screen for its covert activities, including liaison with the movement’s leadership abroad, the transfer of funds to field operatives, and the identification of potential recruits. ... Levitt does not state in his article is that the Palestinian Authority clearly knows of these social deficiencies and has done little to correct them. ... This is the crux of another article Mr. Levitt authored, The Political Economy of Middle East Terrorism. ... ”(1) The article supports this claim by stating: “The European Union’s financial blocking list of terrorist entities lists only the Izz al-Din al-Qassem Brigades, but not the rest of the Hamas support infrastructure. ... ”(4) In the second article Mr. ... ” An article from ICT reports the parents of an American teenager is suing Hamas’ Chicago Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development for “funneling money to Hamas to buy weapons used to murder their son. ... Levitt, and commend his position in the article, he is lacking in suggestions as to how the Palestinian Authority might accomplish this. ... These questions deserved to be answered in the article.