JERUSALEM (JTA) — A peace process will be impossible as long as Hamas controls the Gaza Strip, Israel’s Shin Bet chief said.
Yuval Diskin told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Tuesday that there is no way to have a sustainable peace unless there is a Palestinian unity government, not like now with Gaza run by Hamas and the West Bank run by the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority.
"Hamas will never relinquish its hold on Gaza and the P.A. will never relinquish the West Bank," he said. "A unity government will form only under extreme international pressure."
Diskin also said that if the Palestinians were to hold elections now, it is likely that Hamas would win. He added that the reason Hamas has maintained quiet in Gaza is to give itself time to rearm.
Diskin also commended the Egyptians for working to stop smuggling into Gaza.
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